RECAP the action as Pompey come from behind to bury promotion chasers!

Pompey v BoltonPompey v Bolton
Pompey v Bolton
The John Mousinho era continues under the lights tonight at Fratton Park.

It’s been an encouraging start to the new head coach’s tenure with four wins and two draws from eight games.

A stiff test lies in wait, however, in the shape of promotion-chasing Bolton arriving at Fratton Park.

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The Trotters have won six of their past seven league games to propel then up the League One table.

We’ll be building up to kick-off with all the team news and talking points before bringing live commentary when the action gets underway at 7.45pm.

LIVE Pompey 3 Bolton 1

A night under the Fratton lights

The John Mousinho era continues under the lights tonight at Fratton Park.

It’s been an encouraging start to the new head coach’s tenure with four wins and two draws from eight games.

A stiff test lies in wait, however, in the shape of promotion-chasing Bolton arriving at Fratton Park.

The Trotters have won six of their past seven league games to propel then up the League One table.

We’ll be buiding up to kick-off with all the team news and talking points before bringing live commentary when the action gets underway at 7.45pm.

Here’s how we think Pompey will line up

John Mousinho on the progress being made

But the head coach has insisted there is more to come from his men as he continues to stamp his mark on the squad.

The then managerless Blues’ loss at the University of Bolton Stadium in January represented one of the lowest points in the campaign as their torrid form in the league continued.

This saw Pompey slip to 15th in the table after a run of one win in their previous 15 League One outings.

It came just six days prior to Mousinho’s arrival at Fratton Park, which has since seen his men win four of his eight games in charge.

And the 36-year-old is adamant his rejuvenated squad have shown signs of improvement under his watch.

He told The News: ‘It was a tough game for Pompey at the time, not just because of the result but the performance and the way Bolton went about their business was excellent and we couldn’t get to grips with them at the time.

‘It was a good yard stick in where the side were at and maybe a reflection of the confidence in the group at the time.

‘There were still some good players out there and clearly there’s some good players in the changing room who are capable of excellent performances but confidence was low at the time.

‘That is something we’ve really focused on picking up over the past few weeks by letting players know how much we’ve backed them and how much we think they’re able to go out and deliver a result.

‘It’s difficult to say and to put a number on it but I’d like to think that it is up to individuals to have a look at the side and see what they think has progressed.

‘There’s some things that have worked for us really well and others that haven’t.

‘One thing that we are really aware of is that we have got a long way to go, there’s a lot of progress still to make.

‘While the performance was really good on Saturday for 45 minutes, there’s probably another 45 where we need improvements.

‘We’re not getting carried away with anything, we’re making sure we keep working hard and working on the right things and we know it’ll be one of those things that happens over the medium and long term.’

Pompey welcome Bolton to Fratton Park on Tuesday, with Mousinho’s men unbeaten in their last three league outings.

While Ian Evatt’s men have won seven of their last eight fixtures, the Blues boss believes the contest at PO4 will be a true reflection of the progress made in recent weeks.

‘Absolutely we’re going to be getting a result at home, we look to get results wherever we go and try to win games either at home or away.

‘More importantly what we want to see is progress, we want to have a look at where the side was when myself and all the coaching staff came in and see if we can move that forward bit by bit every week.

‘The Bolton game is another good yard stick of how far we’ve come because that was the last game before I came in where we lost to them away from home.’

Most PopularJohn Mousinho is adamant Pompey have significantly improved since their last contest against Bolton.

An injury update ahead of the game

John Mousinho has provided an injury update on Tom Lowery.

The Pompey boss confirmed that ‘medically, everything is good to go’ with the midfielder, who has been out of league action since mid-September with a hamstring complaint.

But whether that translates into an appearance against Bolton on Tuesday night remains to be seen.

The former Crewe man has been back training in different capacities in recent weeks. And while he is available for selection for the League One game against the Trotters, a final decision on his involvement will be made tomorrow.

Speaking to The News ahead of the game, Mousinho spelt out exactly where things stand for Lowery.

He said: ‘So it looks like Tom will be available for selection barring another conversation tomorrow just to make sure that he’s come through training.

‘Today, there’s been no issues and I think that will be a nice lift, with tomorrow maybe too soon in terms of match fitness.

‘Whether he’ll be in the squad, we’re not quite sure yet – we’ll have a little review that.

‘But medically, everything is good to go.

‘We’ve been erring on the side of caution with Tom, making sure we do things properly and he comes back with a bit of training in the bank.

‘He’s done that and we’ve taken a couple of weeks extra than maybe you would have done with his type of injury – but that’s to benefit us as we want to make sure he’s right and that Tom is happy and ready to compete.

‘I think we’ve now got to a stage were he is.’

Lowery was one of six players absent for Saturday’s 4-0 win against Cheltenham at Fratton Park.

He was joined on the list by Reeco Hackett, who sat out the game because of a back injury suffered in training on Friday.

When asked if there were any other injury updates going into the Bolton game, Mousinho added: ‘No, no other injuries from Saturday so a clean bill of health’.

Get your thermals out!

Temparatures are dropping tonight at Fratton. Maybe not be going below freezing, but there’s a definite chill in the air.

A tough assignmen tonight against Bolton. The Trotters has won six out of seven in the league and have two losses ib 17 in all competitions. On top of that, Ian Evatt’s side last week made it to Wembley in the Papa John’s Trophy.

Pompey are unchanged - and Tom Lowery is on the bench!

Pompey team news reaction

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