Portsmouth boss sees Checkatrade value '“ but will ring the changes at SouthendÂ

And the Pompey boss making wholesale changes when his side travel to Southend in the third round of the competition tonight (7.45pm).

The Blues' main priority this season is promotion from League One. They sit top of the table and five points clear with 20 games remaining. 

Jackett hasn't rolled out many of his key players in the Checkatrade Trophy this season.

He's instead used it as an opportunity go hand those on the periphery of his squad first-team minutes. 

Nevertheless, since the Football League relaxed the rules on player criteria, the Pompey boss believes clubs can use the tournament to their advantage. 

And Jackett is keen for the Blues to progress into the quarter-finals with a win over the Shrimpers.

He said: '˜There have been good games, different types of games.

'˜Spurs and Arsenal under-21s will be different to Southend away.

'˜I think it's a valuable competition. Relaxing the rules for us league clubs has been good because we can use it positively. 

'˜They (the EFL) might come back and say for sponsorship reasons etc it needs to be seen as a first-team fixture.

'˜When you see a build-up like we've just had over Christmas, though, and then Saturday's game with the whole emotion of it, you go Tuesday then Saturday. It's tough to keep playing the same lads.

'˜It's fallen well for us in terms of injuries and positionally in terms of squad planning.

'˜If you do get your squad planning then they do reflect in these type of games.'

Jackett will field a completely different line-up to the side that beat Norwich in the FA Cup on Saturday.

Adam May, Danny Rose and Louis Dennis are all set to start.

The Pompey boss will also include some academy youngsters on the bench, as well as some who featured at Carrow Road. 

'˜We'll need some of them as substitutes, definitely, and maybe have a look that way,' Jackett added. 

'˜It'll be very, very similar to how we have used the competition before.

'˜It will very much be the same sort of selection process.

'˜We've done that in other rounds where maybe we've taken some of the lads that have played on Saturday and put them as a substitute.

'˜Decisions need to be made on young players as well and it'll be good to look at those.'