Gaffer: Still waiting for that thumping Portsmouth win

Gaffer for a Day, Luke Atiyah, aged 28 from Havant, previews Pompey's clash with Burton...
Gaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe PeplerGaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe Pepler
Gaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe Pepler

I know it's difficult to change a winning team, but Brett Pitman should return for the visit of Burton.

You can't argue with being top of League One, it has been an incredible start. You would have bitten anyone's hand off in the summer if offered six points clear in October.

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But I'm still waiting for us to put a team to the sword, and if we can get Pitman scoring like he did last season then could genuinely be unstoppable.

Gaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe PeplerGaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe Pepler
Gaffer for a Day Luke Atiyah is a big fan of Tom Naylor. Picture: Joe Pepler

Replacing Hawkins with him would be my only change for tonight's Fratton Park game.

Hawkins is quite a defensive striker, although I appreciate what he does for the team '“ he was fantastic in the air on Saturday, winning virtually everything.

Having said that, it must be difficult to look a 25-goal striker in the face and leave him on the bench.

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I'm happy to win the league by hook or by crook, but the goals have not been flowing recently and a nice 4-0 or 5-0 would send out a real statement of intent.

We played well in the second half against Fleetwood, while the first 45 minutes at Wimbledon was the best we've played all season, but eventually it was all hands on deck.

Tonight is going to be tricky, we have to break these teams down at home. Managers watching videos of Gillingham, Shrewsbury and Wycombe will know what they have to do.

They must hit us on the counter-attack, go in defensively-minded and come to Fratton Park for a point. It's Pompey's job to unlock them.

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Still, it would be crazy to predict anything other than a Blues win over Burton given recent results.

I am a massive Tom Naylor fan, he is going to be our Michael Doyle this season.

And Ben Thompson is our best loan signing since Andres D'Alessandro.