‘I don’t care’: Portsmouth skipper’s cut-throat call as he vies with former club Cardiff City for Championship survival

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Marlon Pack insisted he doesn’t care who goes down from the Championship - as long as it’s not Pompey.

The Blues skipper’s cut-throat assessment comes as his former club Cardiff City vie for their place in the second tier, along with John Mousinho’s men.

Pack’s side go into an Easter period which could potentially decide their fate this term, with Friday’s trip to Norwich followed by Watford arriving at Fratton Park on Monday

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The stakes could scarcely be higher ahead of the trip to Carrow Road, with four points the gap to the bottom three after last weekend’s 2-2 draw with Derby County.

At the same time as Rob Atkinson was levelling the game up in stoppage time, Cardiff were falling to a 1-0 home loss to fellow relegation rivals Stoke City on home soil.

It got ugly in the Welsh capital, as Bluebirds fans turned on their players with the club Pack spent three years with a point off Derby County in the bottom three.

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Pack made it clear he’d like to see both teams stay up in an ideal world, but the Buckland boy also knows there can be no room for sentiment in the bid to remain in the Championship.

And that means the midfielder has no issue with Pompey staying up at his former employer’s expense.

Pack said: ‘Of course (he’d like both clubs to stay up) but my priority and focus is always going to be Portsmouth, whoever we stay up instead of I don’t care.

‘But there’s the human side of it and I know a lot of people there (Cardiff), there’s good people at the football club.

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‘We’ve all lived it here with relegation at Portsmouth and it’s not great going through that.

‘So it’s a shame for them to be down there, but at the same time the focus for me is this football club.

‘You look at other results, but as long as we take care of business those other results will be irrelevant with the position we’re in.’

Picture becoming clearer for Cardiff, Hull City, Derby County & Co

With just four games remaining this term clubs are running out of runway to secure their places in the division, which inevitably means a dramatic survival race is likely to become clearer over the Easter period.

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Pack added: ‘I think this weekend will give you the picture. I think at the end of this weekend you’ll see the remaining sides in it.

‘There’s sides who will be playing each other and not everyone can win, both at the top and the bottom of the Championship we’re at a really tasty end to the run-in.

‘It just shows how great this league is and we’ve seen it this season, with the stadiums you go it, the level and the quality of individuals and teams. It’s such a great league to be a part of, that’s why it’s of paramount importance to stay here as a football club.

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‘It’s also important for us as individuals, because if you continue to be a Championship footballer who knows what roads that will lead to?

‘It’s a great division to be a part of, so for us to grow and progress we need to establish ourselves as a Championship club.’

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