Portsmouth 1-1 West Ham United - Report

The Portsmouth team for todays game was:

Ashdown
Primus - O'Brien - Stefanovic - Griffin
Robert - O'Neil - Hughes - Taylor
LuaLua - Silva

Subs: Westerveld, Karadas, Viafara, Priske, Todorov

and the West Ham team was:

Carroll
Repka - Ferdinand - Collins - Konchesky
Newton - Mullins - Reo-Coker - Etherington
Harewood - Zamora

Subs: Hislop, Bellion. Gabbidon, Fletcher, Dailly

Referee: Alan Wiley

Harry Redknapp's Portsmouth had to make do with a point against former club West Ham after failing to make the most of dominating the first 45 minutes.

The Hammers endured a nightmare first half in which they had to use all three substitutes and went behind when Gary O'Neil netted Laurent Robert's cross.

Defender James Collins equalised early in the second half, turning to shoot home through a crowd of players.

Pompey's Robert was sent off late in the game for a second bookable offence.

With Hayden Mullins, Tomas Repka and substitute Danny Gabbidon all going off injured in the first half, a 1-0 half-time deficit was the least of West Ham's worries.

The visitors offered little up front and trailed at the break to O'Neil's goal, scored when he swept home Robert's cross from the right wing.

Lomana Tresor Lualua and Dario Silva were constant threats to the visiting defence as Portsmouth hammered away, trying to add to their advantage but failing to extend their lead.

At the interval, West Ham's problems could have been even worse, as goalkeeper Roy Carroll sailed close to the wind by handling the ball right on the edge of his box, to howls of derision from the home fans.

But, following a bruising first half, West Ham looked far more composed after the break.

Early in the second half they were on level terms when defender Collins turned and shot through a crowd of players to score his first goal for the Hammers.

O'Neil set up a fine length-of-the-pitch passing move for Portsmouth but they wasted the opening by being over-elaborate in front of goal.

West Ham replied when Matthew Etherington and Marlon Harewood combined well to set up Christian Dailly - but his shot was way off target.

With five minutes left, Robert, who had earlier been booked for a foul on Etherington, was dismissed for a second foul on Paul Konchesky.

West Ham twice came within inches of snatching a late winner, through Harewood's curling shot and Dailly's diving header.

Report: bbc.co.uk/sport

wanc.co.uk's Pompey Man of the Match: Gary O'Neil

Portsmouth 1-0 West Brom - Report

The Portsmouth team for todays game was:

Ashdown
Primus - O'Brien - Stefanovic - Griffin
O'Neil - Hughes - Taylor - Robert
LuaLua - Pericard

Subs: Westerveld, Cisse, Viafara, Priske, Todorov

and the West Brom team was:

Kuszczak
Albrechtsen - Davies - Clement - Robinson
Kamara - Wallwork - Inamoto - Greening
Ellington - Kanu

Subs: Moore, Carter, Kirkland, Earnshaw, Campbell

Referee: Mark Halsey

Substitute Svetoslav Todorov scored a second-half winner as Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp celebrated victory in his first game back at Fratton Park.

The first half was a dour affair with a shot from West Brom's Nathan Ellington and a free-kick from Laurent Robert being the highlights.

Pompey started the second half brightly and Todorov put his side ahead after finishing from Lomano LuaLua's cross.

West Brom pushed for an equaliser but could not find the breakthrough.

The result ended Pompey's run of five straight league defeats and lifts them to third from bottom in the league table.

Fellow strugglers West Brom are now just three points ahead and are still searching for their first away win of the season.

Redknapp kept the Portsmouth faithful waiting before making his first appearance at Fratton Park since leaving Southampton.

And, after shaking a host of hands on the way to the directors' box, it was not long before he was on the phone to the bench after Vincent Pericard had to leave the pitch injured after just six minutes with Todorov taking his place.

But for the rest of the half, Redknapp was left shaking his head as both sides served up a dismal offering with passes going astray and the final ball lacking precision.

With the cold wind and the pitch cutting up badly, the teams struggled to get into the game, the only action coming in the opening exchanges was a half shout for a penalty after the ball came off midfielder Junichi Inamoto.

The keepers were in danger of playing bit parts with the first save coming from Pompey's Jamie Ashdown on 22 minutes when Nathan Ellington fired in from outside the area.

Portsmouth's Laurent Robert was the player most likely to make things happen and he warmed up the Pompey crowd with a fiercely-struck free kick that went just over the bar from 20 yards out.

Robert's effort livened up the home side but they failed to threaten despite some promising half-breaks.

Portsmouth came out for the second half looking far sharper and LuaLua almost broke the deadlock with a first-time shot from the edge of the box but Tomasz Kuszczak saved well.

And they took a deserved lead on 56 minutes when Lua Lua got in behind the West Brom defence and centred to Todorov, who dinked it over the advancing Kuszczak from close range.

Roared on by the Fratton Park crowd, Portsmouth started to dominate and Kuszczak had to be alert to deny the rampant LuaLua again soon after when the visitors failed to deal with a long ball.

Baggies boss Bryan Robson threw on striker Rob Earnshaw, who had a transfer request turned down this week, to try and get an equaliser but Portsmouth's well-organised defence effectively snuffed out any threat.

And Redknapp's celebrations at the final whistle showed how important the victory was to his side.

Report: bbc.co.uk/sport

wanc.co.uk's Pompey Man of the Match: Gary O'Neil

Tottenham Hotspurs 3-1 Portsmouth - Report

Portsmouth's reappointment of Harry Redknapp as their manager failed to produce an immediate dividend as Tottenham came from behind to win.

Lomana Tresor LuaLua gave Pompey a first-half lead, hitting an unstoppable shot past Paul Robinson.

Spurs pulled level when Ledley King rose to head home from a corner and after Gary O'Neil's handball, Mido sidefooted home an 85th minute penalty.

Substitute Jermain Defoe wrapped up the win, scoring from a difficult angle.

The win moved Spurs three points clear of fifth-placed Bolton.

At the other end of the table things look bleak for Portsmouth, who remain second from bottom, six points behind 17th-placed West Brom.

On the plus side Portsmouth showed plenty of grit, a quality they will need to reproduce if they are to clamber out of the relegation zone.

Redknapp deployed Vincent Pericard as a lone striker, but playing for the first time in the Premiership this season, he found the role hard work.

Pericard's inability to hold up the ball in those opening stages saw the Portsmouth defence come under sustained pressure.

Yong-Pyo Lee's pass exposed a yawning gap in the Portsmouth defence to find Robbie Keane, but he shot straight at Jamie Ashdown.

Edgar Davids was the next Spurs player to probe the space between Andy O'Brien and Linvoy Primus, his clever pass freeing Mido, who also shot directly at Ashdown.

Ashdown's best save of the first half came when Keane threatened for a second time.

The Portsmouth keeper did well to stand up to Keane, taking the sting out of the Irishman's attempted lob, and Dejan Stefanovic was able to clear the ball.

Completely against the run of the play LuaLua put Portsmouth in front with a stunning individual effort.

There had seemed no danger when O'Neil hit a speculative pass into the Spurs half.

But Lee, under pressure from LuaLua, was unable to clear and after the ball bounced the Portsmouth forward struck a fierce shot that zipped past a startled Robinson.

The goal served to instil more confidence in Portsmouth and for the first time Pericard threatened, striding into the Spurs area before he was crowded out.

Early in the second half Ashdown came under renewed pressure from a couple of set pieces and he did well to twice punch on both occasions.

But Ashdown could do nothing about the Spurs equaliser when King rose to steer a header past the Portsmouth goalkeeper.

Soon afterwards Robinson showed superb reactions to palm away Matthew Taylor's first-time shot.

With just five minutes remaining O'Neil jumped in an attempt to block Andy Reid's free-kick and referee Uriah Rennie immediately awarded a penalty.

Ashdown got a hand to Mido's shot, but the Egyptian striker's effort had too much power for the Portsmouth keeper.

Defoe heaped further misery on Portsmouth, driving the ball past Ashdown from a difficult angle.

Report: bbc.co.uk/sport

wanc.co.uk's Pompey Man of the Match: Lomana LuaLua

Tottenham Hotspur v Portsmouth - Team News

The Portsmouth team for todays game away at Tottenham Hotspur is:

Ashdown
Primus - O'Brien - Stefanovic - Griffin
O'Neil - Viafara - Hughes - Taylor
LuaLua - Pericard

Subs: Westerveld, Priske, Robert, Cisse, Todorov

and the Tottenham Hotspur team is:

Robinson
Stalteri - Dawson - King - Lee
Jenas - Carrick - Davids - Tainio
Keane - Mido

Subs: Kelly, Cerny, Defoe, Reid, Routledge

Referee: Uriah Rennie

Play up Pompey!

Harry is new Portsmouth Manager

Press Conference is at 5pm today.

Welcome home Harry!

Report

Harry Redknapp is back at the Fratton Park helm a year after quitting the club in acrimonious circumstances.

The 58-year-old then joined the club's south-coast rivals Southampton but walked out on them last week and made his desire to return to Pompey clear.

He is now back after the the chairmen of both clubs agreed a compensation deal for Redknapp.

Saints chairman Rupert Lowe had initially rejected counterpart Milan Mandaric's first offer and refused Redknapp permission to talk to Pompey.

Redknapp feared he would be left in limbo with Mandaric stating he would look elswhere to find a successor for Alain Perrin.

But a deal has been thrashed out and Redknapp will be in charge for the club's next game against Tottenham on Monday.

Harry's coming home!

Harry Redknapp has revealed he is close to making a sensational return to Portsmouth.

The move has been mooted for some time after Milan Mandaric had admitted he was hoping to speak to Redknapp about the vacant managerial position at Fratton Park.

Despite Southampton refusing Portsmouth permission to speak to Redknapp, the former West Ham boss paved the way for the move by leaving St Mary's last weekend.

But the deal to take Redknapp back to Portsmouth looked in danger earlier this week with Mandaric unable to agree a compensation package with his Southampton counterpart Rupert Lowe.

However, an agreement appears to have been reached with an announcement expected later on Wednesday.

Redknapp has revealed he is ready and raring to take on the challenge of helping Portsmouth escape relegation from The Premiership.

"I am glad to hear the two chairmen are talking together to get this resolved," Redknapp told Sky Sports News.

"There are only a few games before Portsmouth's next game with Tottenham."

"I want the players to be ready. I am ready."

Source: SkySports.com

Harry fears "dream move" is off

The Sun newspaper are reporting that Harry Redknapp fears his dream move back to Portsmouth is on the verge of collapsing.

Just three days after walking out on Southampton, Redknapp has yet to speak to Pompey chairman Milan Mandaric.

More to follow

Manchester United 3-0 Portsmouth - Report

Manchester United moved up to second in the Premiership with a comfortable win against managerless Portsmouth.

Paul Scholes headed his first goal of the season from Ryan Giggs' corner after 20 minutes and Wayne Rooney added the second 10 minutes from time.

Ruud van Nistelrooy then lofted home a third as United finally made their massive dominance pay.

Portsmouth, with rumours of Harry Redknapp's return rife, never posed a serious threat as United won with ease.

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson flew back from Belfast after attending George Best's funeral.

And Old Trafford was united before kick-off for a minute's applause in honour of Best.

One name missing from the United line-up was newly-appointed captain Gary Neville, who was not involved, perhaps with the Champions League game against Benfica in Portugal on Wednesday in mind.

United made a fast start, and Scholes nearly took advantage when Portsmouth goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown fumbled Van Nistelrooy's shot.

The Holland striker then almost broke the deadlock after 14 minutes when he turned brilliantly on the edge of the area and shot narrowly over the top.

United were dominating Portsmouth completely - and it was no surprise when they took the lead six minutes later.

Giggs' corner found Scholes totally unmarked in the area, and he sent a downward header past Ashdown.

Van Nistelrooy should have given United a two-goal cushion on the stroke of half-time, but Ashdown plunged bravely at his feet to save.

United lost John O'Shea during the interval, when he was replaced by Kieran Richardson.

Pompey - who had barely ventured into United territory - almost delivered a stunning sucker-punch 12 seconds after the re-start, when Matthew Taylor surged into the area but shot into the side-netting.

United, not for the first time this season, were labouring to ram home massive advantage in territory and possession, and it was no surprise when Cristiano Ronaldo replaced Giggs.

Inevitably, it was Rooney who settled the growing nerves inside Old Trafford with 10 minutes left.

Portsmouth failed to clear, and Rooney expertly swept a right-foot finish beyond Ashdown from just inside the area.

Ronaldo's pace and invention had made a big difference, and he was influential again as he crossed for Van Nistelrooy to chip over Ashdown to seal the win six minutes from time.

Report: bbc.co.uk/sport

wanc.co.uk's Pompey Man of the Match: Jamie Ashdown

Manchester United v Portsmouth - Team News

The Portsmouth team for todays game away at Manchester United is:

Ashdown
Griffin - O'Brien - Priske - Stefanovic
O'Neil - Viafara - Diao - Taylor
LuaLua - Silva

Subs: Westerveld, Primus, Vukic, Robert, Todorov

and the Manchester United team is:

Van der Sar
Silvestre - Brown - Ferdinand - O'Shea
Park - Smith - Scholes - Giggs
Rooney - van Nistelrooy

Subs: Howard, Richardson, Fletcher, Ronaldo, Saha

Referee: Chris Foy

Play up Pompey!

Redknapp walks out on Saints

Harry Redknapp has informed Southampton he regards "his employment with the club as being at an end", according to club chairman Rupert Lowe.

Lowe's announcement comes after he had turned down a request from Portsmouth to approach Redknapp about the vacant manager's job at Fratton Park.

Dave Bassett has been placed in temporary charge of the team for Saturday's match against Burnley.

Lowe added he intends to report the matter to the Premier League.

He said: "As far as I am concerned even if there has not been a breach of rules there has been a breach of courtesy and basic good manners."

Lowe went on to say: "On Wednesday, November 30 I was contacted by Dennis Roach (a football agent) who told me that I was likely to receive a request from Portsmouth to allow them to speak to Harry about their managerial vacancy.

"It's not often that I am lost for words but I was then. Not only because this is the most extraordinary story in an extraordinary industry but because I believed Harry to be here for the long term.

"On Thursday I spoke to Harry, who told me that he had been considering his future and that he believed Portsmouth to be his 'spiritual home'.''

The Saints chairman informed Portsmouth director Peter Storrie he would not grant permission to approach Redknapp unless Southampton were paid "the unexpired portion of Harry's contract which is the usual convention in these circumstances''.

Lowe added: "I was promised an answer which to date has never come.

"I spoke to Harry again late on Friday night to agree arrangements for today's important game against Burnley.

"Harry said that it was now impossible for him to come back to the club and that, in his words, he had been let down.

"He told me that he regarded his employment with the club as being at an end and that we would deal with the necessary paperwork at the beginning of next week.''

Lowe, who will attend Saturday's post-match press conference, continued: "I find it extraordinary that officials of Portsmouth Football Club should have made some of the public statements that they did yesterday about a Southampton employee, particularly as I have had no formal conclusion to our discussions.''

Club director Andrew Cowen said: "Gobsmacked is too small a word. You don't even get a plot like this in Star Wars."