Pompey Defence

I will return to my political thesis in my next posting but want to put in two or three posts about the possible Pompey team after the summer spending. This is in the realm of fanciful and wishful thinking but it is entirely due to the arrival of Dr, Sulaiman Al Fahim (if he completes signing the papers this month).

At right back I would try to keep hold of Glen Johnson despite the reputed bid of £17 million by Chelsea and the interest shown by Liverpool. Glen himself must be flattered by the attention but the England full back should be made to feel that he could be in at the ground floor of a great footballing revolution here at Pompey. He is definitely the sort of player on which we want to build a team and a team ethos. I don't want quick fire success as my previous post showed. I want to build up a team and a system or style of playing that will carry us forward into the future. Glen Johnson is young enough and good enough to help us lay down the foundations to do that. I would want to back him up with another right back and for the moment I would be tempted to go with Angel Rangel (Swansea) and Mendy (Hull).

At left back I would let Hreidarrson go to Gers and thank him hugely for helping keep us in the Premier League. He will always be a Pompey hero. I am unsure about Belhadj as a left back but would probably want to keep him as a squad player - his unpredictability sometimes unsettles his own team but can have the same effect on the opposition. I would go for established PL players such as Shorey (Villa), Clichy (Arsenal)and Garrido (Manchester City).

At centre back I would make every effort to retain Sylvain Distin as a player and as club captain. Certainly he would not be allowed to leave for the £4 million that have been suggested. I would be tempted to keep Sol as a totem of intent but would probably let him go to Basle or a European club, but not another PL club. So my search would be for a player to work alongside Distin in the centre of defence and probably one or two other centre backs as squad players. I know Lescott (Everton) has attracted a great deal of attention from other clubs, especially after the Cup Final. I am not sure why Everton and David Moyes would want to let him go but he would certainly be one of my targets. Hangeland (Fulham),Taylor (Newcastle), Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea),Cuellar (Villa), Bassong (Newcastle) and Johnson (Cardiff) would be the players I would be chasing this July and probably in the order stated.

I would also make sure that my reserve team was one of the strongest around and that the players there were confident that the style or system they were using would enable them to step straight up into the first team as and when needed. I would also ensure that the Academy were playing the style that ultimately would inform the whole club approach as at Barcelona and the great Dutch clubs. Also the Academy youngsters would be "bloodied" and used at reserve and first team levels as and when thought appropriate to encourage the individual and deepen the squad ethos.

I will break off and look back at localism in politics for the next post or two before returning to my dream midfield and strike force for the bright Pompey of the near future. I hasten to add that all this speculation is for the short and medium term. The new manager should be empowered and entrusted to develop a club that will be renowned as much for its style of play as for its success. I would hope this would be with training facilities and a new stadium the equal of any other in this country if not Europe. I would hope that those promised links with South America (and in my opinion with Argentina) are part of the new manager's remit.