The Icelandic defender made his return from a foot injury to appear in the Blues' starting line-up for the first time this season in Sunday's 1-0 defeat at Stoke City.

But while it marked a delayed start to the campaign for Hreidarsson, it signalled the end of Paul Hart's reign as Pompey boss after a 10th defeat left the club rooted to the foot of the Premier League.

Hreidarsson said: 'I am shocked. I like Paul and I really did not see this coming.

'But maybe the main thing is now turning Fratton Park into a bit of a fortress.

'That's got to be the key to the season now and we will have to make sure that we don't lose games there.'

While Hart's dismissal came off the back of defeat away from Fratton Park, it is perhaps the home form that has been one of the most disappointing aspects of the season.

The Blues have recorded just one Premier League victory on their home patch this term - a 4-0 win over Wigan at the end of last month.

And with champions Manchester United due to visit on Saturday, the task does not get any easier.

But Hreidarsson believes Pompey must ignore the status of the teams on the horizon, with fixtures against Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal in the next few weeks.

Hreidarsson said: 'We have to make sure that we pick up something every week - it doesn't matter who comes.

'We are going to have to turn it into an absolute fortress from now on, that's for sure.'

Despite the Stoke defeat, the towering defender reported no ill-effects from the foot injury that has troubled him over the past few weeks and was also impressed by the team's performance.

He said: 'It wasn't a case of playing the football and not being able to defend because we did both. But the injury felt fine.'