The Blues assistant manager explained how the Pompey defence had been putting in the hours at the training ground following the defensive horror show at Arsenal in their last fixture.

And as a former defender himself, Adams is well aware of the importance of defensive solidity to give the team a sound footing to build from.

Adams said: 'We were pleased to get a clean sheet – it's the tightest we've been for a little while.

'We were very sloppy against Arsenal in our last game.

'I thought it was important that we got some resilience back in our play and we have been working hard in training to be tough to beat again, which we were.

'If you keep a clean sheet, you have a great chance of going up the other end and scoring.'

Although Adams was disappointed that his former Arsenal colleague Kanu was unable to convert a first-half penalty, the assistant manager was impressed by the players' attitude.

He said: We had the penalty and John Utaka had a great chance, but for me it was a question of attitude after the sloppy result at Arsenal.

'That was a blip because we went to Chelsea the week before and we should have come away with a result.'

With Pompey having now faced all of last season's top four in a terrifying six-game opening to the new season, Adams believes there is a chance for Pompey to start climbing the table.

He said: 'It's been a heck of a start, but we should be looking to pick up more points now.

'We've played all of the top boys already and we have a couple of interesting games coming up.

'When you consider the physcially demanding pre-season and the first 10 fixtures we've got, you'd say it is a decent start.

'Of the top four, only Arsenal have undone us completely. It's nice to put yourself up against these kinds of clubs and see where you are at.

'But this is a tough place to come for any team and I'm sure Liverpool were pleased to get a point.'

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