Portsmouth closing in on beating QPR to highly-regarded Brentford and ex-Chelsea starlet

Pompey are closing in on their second signing of the January window.

Brentford’s Myles Peart-Harris is poised to complete a loan switch to Fratton Park for the remainder of the season.

The attacking midfielder has also been pursued by QPR, yet the Blues are confident they have won the race, with potentially an unveiling in the early part of this week.

The 21-year-old spent last season on loan at Forest Green Rovers, making 47 appearances and scoring six times.

He started both of their League One encounters with the Blues, with each ending in 1-0 defeats for Rovers as they suffered relegation.

Since then, Peart-Harris has broken into Brentford’s first-team squad, making three substitute appearances in the Premier League since the start of December.

With the Bees struggling with injuries at the time, he also appeared off the bench in their FA Cup third-round clash with Wolves, featuring in both matches as they suffered defeat in the replay.

Now they are ready to loan out the former England under-16 international and see Pompey as the right club to aid his promising development.

Peart-Harris began his career at Chelsea before being recruited by Brentford for a reported £1.4m fee in the summer of 2021 on a four-year deal.

He has been identified by the Blues as a player capable of adding more creativity to their midfield, particularly in the absence of Alex Robertson and the ongoing unavailability of Tino Anjorin.

Pompey, who returned to winning ways at Fleetwood on Saturday, currently have three players on loan - Abu Kamara, Robertson and Anjorin.

They have so far recruited only free agent Matt Macey during the January window, while the short-term deal of Josh Martin has been extended until the season’s end.

Mousinho’s men remain top of League One, yet Derby have the chance of overtaking them on Tuesday night with a visit to Reading - and the Blues not in action.