Portsmouth boss feeling demand for success as axe falls on ex Southampton, Sheffield United and Reading boss at Charlton Athletic

And the Blues boss acknowledged the parallels with his own position and Nigel Adkins, following his sacking as Charlton boss this week.

Cowley looked on as Adkins was fired, after a poor start to the season for the Addicks left them in the League One relegation places.

The former Southampton boss was appointed in his position the day before Cowley arrived at Fratton Park in March.

The Scouser accumulated 33 points from 26 games in charge compared to Cowley’s 35 from 28, with both men taking on big projects.

The axe fell on Adkins, however, while Pompey’s board have shown support for their boss and are preaching continuity

But Cowley can still feel the external demand for results and quick progress in a ruthless business.

He said: ‘I’m sad for Nigel. He’s a really good man, a kind human being.

‘Having lived it myself. I know the pain he’ll feel so my heart goes out to him.

‘You also understand it’s part of a challenging and tough industry.

‘It’s tough. They had a good end to the season, form picked up under him and they had a strong finish.

‘Then a lot of their recruitment happened late, so how effective was their pre-season as a consequence?

‘We’re both big clubs who’ve had difficult periods.

‘They’re both juggernauts of football clubs, but juggernauts aren’t easy to turn around.

‘This is football, though. It’s a great game and a difficult industry.

‘It’s such an emotional game and we live in a world of instant gratification.

‘Everyone wants everything yesterday and nobody wants to wait. Social media has accelerated it maybe.

‘To be an owner of a football club, you need to have incredible business acumen.

‘To earn the money required to own a club, they would have been successful in business - and very few people hit the jackpot and make millions overnight. It’s usually process driven, and that takes time.

‘But in football you need to win to get time.

‘Our owners have been excellent, though, they are good people.

‘I feel for them because when the team doesn’t do well they get the criticism. That’s unfair.

‘It’s unfair they’re getting the criticism for the team’s shortcomings, but this is the world we live in.’

Pompey face a testing trip to Accrington as they look to arrest a terrible run of one win in 12 games, which has seen them tumble down League One.

Cowley believes he can see the issues affecting his team, but that doesn’t mean the answers can necessarily be found immediately – despite the demand.

He added: ‘It’s not easy, but what a great challenge.

‘You can find solutions, it can be done.

‘The longer you spend somewhere, the more it becomes apparent and the clearer it becomes.

‘But obviously you have two times in a calendar year when you can recruit and resolve some of the problems. This is why it’s tough.’

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