How Kenny Jackett's injury contingency plans will impact Portsmouth's recruitment

The Blues boss feels it’s crucial to guard against the threat of injuries, with over five weeks still to run until the close of the window.

That will lead to keeping a spot available for as late as possible, under the new salary cap and squad restriction rules.

Under those rules Pompey can name a squad of up to 22 players over the age of 21, with no restrictions over players under that threshold.

Jackett is also working to the wage ceiling of £2.5m voted in by clubs in League One last month.

He currently has a group of 22 players at his disposal, but that number includes keeper Ducan Turnbull, who appears likely to go out on loan, and 18-year-old Haji Mnoga.

That would leave two places available for players aged over 21, with Pompey looking for a defender, attacking midfielder and potentially some extra pace up front before the October 16 deadline.

That all has to be considered when looking at the type, age of player and money remaining in the budget.

But Jackett feels there needs to be in a contingency plan in place for unforeseen circumstances.

He said: ‘We’re not fully stocked with players but we’ve still got five weeks to go.

‘I just think we have to cover ourselves a little bit for what happens in the future.

‘There’s things like injuries and different things happen - and we need to be ready for that.’

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