Portsmouth boss profiles ideal attacking signing before transfer deadline but remains tight-lipped on Notts Country striker Kyle Wootton amid competition from Huddersfield, Blackburn and Barnsley

Pompey have been crying out for a boost in their goalscoring productivity following an indifferent start to 2022.

And the Blues head coach explained he’s been working hard to rectify the problem – both on the training field and in the transfer market.

The Fratton Park outfit have already welcomed striker Tyler Walker to the south coast this month.

The departures of Ellis Harrison, John Marquis and Gassan Ahadme have left their attacking department thin.

But as the clock ticks down to Monday night’s 11pm deadline, Cowley insisted he knew exactly what he was looking for to bolster his attacking ranks.

He told The News: ‘We’d like to bring another attacking player in if we could. That’s what we would like to do.

‘We’re working really hard as a group to try to add to our creativity and to our goal threat, so we would like to bring one more in if we could.

‘We have a clear recruitment strategy and we know exactly what we want to do. We want to bring young progressive players in.’

Notts County’s Kyle Wootton has been continually linked with a move to Pompey during the current window.

But with Huddersfield, Barnsley, Blackburn and Rotherham registering their admiration for the Magpies hot shot, the Blues could face competition if they move for his signature.

Despite the speculation, though, Cowley remained tight-lipped going into the final days of the window.

He said: ‘I’m not going to get caught up in talking about other people’s players.

‘I think you guys do a good job at doing that for me.

‘There’s a number of players that interest us, and we would like to bring in two in an ideal world between now and Monday.

‘Whether that’s possible or not, time will tell. Sometimes in the January transfer window, it’s not always possible.

‘If we have to compromise we will, but if we do make compromised decisions, they won’t affect our long-term strategy, and that’s very important to me.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Get 30 per cent off our sport subscription, which gives readers unlimited access to all our Pompey and grassroots coverage for just 9p a day, by using the promo code JanSports30. The deal expires at midnight on January 31.