Portsmouth

The paradox of Portsmouth's season continues. Another praise-worthy performance produced another defeat and even more problems for the Premier League's bottom club.

Paul Hart's plans hit a snag before the game even began, with David James pulling a calf in the warm-up. Portsmouth then missed a penalty before being beaten by a goal from a player who the opposition were preparing to withdraw, Tony Pulis admitting afterwards that he had decided to substitute Ricardo Fuller shortly before the Jamaican hit a 74th-minute winner. It is to Hart's credit that his players continue to perform with spirit and style despite such wretched luck.

James's injury came two weeks after Fabio Capello warned he will not be considered for England's World Cup squad unless he can prove he has overcome the knee trouble that has been bothering him since the summer. Hart insisted the latest setback does not suggest there is anything chronically wrong with the keeper.

"He should be fit for the World Cup," said Hart. "He does not have a knee injury. He had an operation on it in the summer and we have been managing his rehabilitation. He has been doing a lot of gym work. I'm not a medical person so I can't say whether this calf injury is compensatory, but a calf injury is only three weeks."

The loss of James meant Jamie Ashdown stepped in to make his first Premier League appearance since May 2008. For most of the match he might as well have still been on the bench, since Stoke rarely forced him into action. Strong starts have been a feature of Stoke's campaign this season but here they began with uncharacteristic sluggishness, exemplified by the way in which Rory Delap conceded a penalty in the seventh minute. After winding up his leg to clear a breaking ball, Delap was beaten to it by Aruna Dindane and ended up kicking the Ivorian in the head. Kevin-Prince Boateng failed to punish that slackness, shooting the spot-kick meekly at Thomas Sorensen.

Portsmouth continued to dominate but could not penetrate. There seemed little prospect of Stoke doing so either until the 74th minute, when Fuller capped the home side's only fluent move of the match by curling a shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.

"To say we're disappointed not to get something out of the game is an understatement," said Hart. "But I still believe we'll get out of this. There are going to be seven or eight teams involved [in the relegation battle] and I think the final analysis could even go down to goal difference."

This is not a news report and may contain views expressed by the author which are not supported by GNM.

The paradox of Portsmouth's season continues. Another praise-worthy performance produced another defeat and even more problems for the Premier League's bottom club.

Paul Hart's plans hit a snag before the game even began, with David James pulling a calf in the warm-up. Portsmouth then missed a penalty before being beaten by a goal from a player who the opposition were preparing to withdraw, Tony Pulis admitting afterwards that he had decided to substitute Ricardo Fuller shortly before the Jamaican hit a 74th-minute winner. It is to Hart's credit that his players continue to perform with spirit and style despite such wretched luck.

James's injury came two weeks after Fabio Capello warned he will not be considered for England's World Cup squad unless he can prove he has overcome the knee trouble that has been bothering him since the summer. Hart insisted the latest setback does not suggest there is anything chronically wrong with the keeper.

"He should be fit for the World Cup," said Hart. "He does not have a knee injury. He had an operation on it in the summer and we have been managing his rehabilitation. He has been doing a lot of gym work. I'm not a medical person so I can't say whether this calf injury is compensatory, but a calf injury is only three weeks."

The loss of James meant Jamie Ashdown stepped in to make his first Premier League appearance since May 2008. For most of the match he might as well have still been on the bench, since Stoke rarely forced him into action. Strong starts have been a feature of Stoke's campaign this season but here they began with uncharacteristic sluggishness, exemplified by the way in which Rory Delap conceded a penalty in the seventh minute. After winding up his leg to clear a breaking ball, Delap was beaten to it by Aruna Dindane and ended up kicking the Ivorian in the head. Kevin-Prince Boateng failed to punish that slackness, shooting the spot-kick meekly at Thomas Sorensen.

Portsmouth continued to dominate but could not penetrate. There seemed little prospect of Stoke doing so either until the 74th minute, when Fuller capped the home side's only fluent move of the match by curling a shot into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.

"To say we're disappointed not to get something out of the game is an understatement," said Hart. "But I still believe we'll get out of this. There are going to be seven or eight teams involved [in the relegation battle] and I think the final analysis could even go down to goal difference."

This is not a news report and may contain views expressed by the author which are not supported by GNM.