Portsmouth desperate to solve clean sheet riddle as they face Barnsley

The Blues have been left perplexed by their inability to keep shut outs in a period they’ve struggled for form.

Jackett’s side last kept out the opposition in League One when they faced Southend at home on December 8.

That’s a run spanning 13 games ahead of today’s meeting with Barnsley.

Pompey have looked closely at the issue and can’t spot a single area which is behind becoming more porous.

But the manager is adamant they have to improve a record of denying the opposition a goal on eight occasions in third-tier action.

Jackett said: ‘I don’t think we give up that many chances in a game.

‘There was a few games but not many where teams have repeated shots, carve us open and we take a bit of a battering.

‘There’s a frustration at a lack of clean sheets.

‘There does need to be improvement and we’re capable of more and better in that department.

‘But our goalkeeper generally isn’t worked too hard so I’d say we’re capable of better.

‘It’s a frustrating stat.

‘We can’t really target one area.

‘Counter-attacks, set-pieces, right side, left side and headers.

‘We’ve got good balance in terms of the back four.

‘We just have to keep working at it and improving.’

Jackett refused to put the upheaval of losing players to injury as a factor in shipping goals of late, with both Jack Whatmough and Nathan Thompson in the treatment room.

He added: ‘The back four we had, there’s currently Jack Whatmough and Nathan Thompson missing.

‘But that can’t be an excuse. We have a squad for those reasons.

‘Christian Burgess and Anton Walkes have come into those positions.

‘It’s been a pretty settled back line and we can’t cite too many changes as a reason.

‘But it is a frustrating stat and one we talk about a lot.

‘We do need to improve that and we can improve it.’