Pompey warned over
POMPEY must be prepared to be ‘pushed into areas you don’t want to go’ at Shrewsbury this afternoon.
That’s what made highflying Hull’s task so difficult as they were held to a 1-1 draw at New Meadow last weekend.
The Shrews have picked up markedly since former Blues boss Steve Cotterill succeeded Sam Ricketts in the hot seat in November.
Despite Cotterill not attending a game this year during his recovery from coronavirus, the Shrews have caused some big upsets.
They’ve beaten automatic promotion hopefuls Sunderland and Peterborough on their own patch, along with frustrating League One leaders Hull seven days ago.
Despite the Tigers having a potent attack, manager Grant McCann felt they were largely nullified by a resolute Shrewsbury back four.
And that’s what Pompey can expect when they face a 17th-placed Shrewsbury outfit unbeaten in their past four games later today (3pm kick-off).
McCann told Hull’s
website: ‘I think we’ve got to respect the point that we’ve taken.
‘It’s a tough place to come to and they’re a team that is strong defensively.
‘They get that back five and midfield four behind the ball, and they try to push you into areas that you don’t want to go.
‘Performance-wise we weren’t at our best and we won’t hide away from that, but what was pleasing was the fact that we kept going after we had conceded the opener.
‘After we equalised, I felt that there was only one team that was going to go on and win it, but we’ll take the point.
‘I feel as though it’s a point gained because it really is a difficult place to come to.’
AwinatNewMeadow could propel Pompey right back into the play-off mix.
Defeat, though, could see them plummet down the table with just 10 matches of the season remaining.
As is proving to be a common theme in this season’s promotion race, every matchday can have a massive impact on a team’s chances of getting out of the division.
Only four points separate fifth-placed Doncaster
Rovers (57 points) and 12th-placed Accrington (53) in a congested top half of the table.
And with Pompey in the thick of it, every point matters at this stage of the season as the pressure intensifies.
The Blues will be without leading scorer John Marquis because of an ankle injury, while Ronan Curtis is away on international duty.