Portsmouth FC: Has the step forward been too big for Pompey?

We get a lot of questions for our weekly Portsmouth podcast “Who Needs Mourinho?” about what to do in January.

Clearly improvements to the equipment will be necessary. However, there are 13 games left before new additions can be played; For now, the solutions will have to come from within.

The other two promoted teams from last season, Derby and Oxford, have had a solid start to the season.

Both could be dragged into a relegation battle but, from the outside, they appear to have adapted well to life in the Championship.

Portsmouth finished 20 points better than Oxford last season and signed one of their best players this summer. Pompeyo is now 10 places worse in the table.

John Mousinho couldn’t have had a much better first 18 months in charge. He is still the brilliant and promising coach he was last season.

He is smart enough to know that there will always be difficult times ahead. Keeping Pompey in the Championship from now on would eclipse last season’s trophy-winning achievements.

Surely the owners will give him time. It would be crazy to fire him, but that doesn’t mean he’s not guilty of the current situation.

Pompey fans will travel more than 850 miles to attend the two away games next week, in Hull and Plymouth. Many will do so more with hope than expectations.

Things can change very quickly in football, and Portsmouth need a change of fortune almost immediately.