Portsmouth 2 Ipswich 0: Neil Allen's verdict - Stunning display has brilliant Blues eyeing Championship safety

The goals of Conor Shaughnessy and Colby Bishop brought Championship football back to Fratton Park.

Almost two years to the day after that iconic Barnsley game and the pair ensured John Mousinho’s men took a giant stride towards remaining there.

Ipswich were fuming after previous Fratton Park fixtures were postponed due to heavy overnight frost and then torrential rain, yet they can have absolutely no complaints over a 2-0 defeat.

This Blues side appeared destined for League One after the QPR debacle, yet, just four games later, they find themselves in a strong position to retain their hard-fought status.

It took late goals against Norwich, Oxford United and, of course, Middlesbrough, but, on this occasion, two goals at the end of the first half put them on the road to a stunning victory.

Just 130 seconds separated Shaughnessy’s headed opener on 42 minutes and Bishop’s close-range finish in a glorious end the opening half which left the promotion-hunting Tractor Boys trailing 2-0 at the break.

All Mousinho’s men had to do from that point was retain their lead and, roared on by the Pompey faithful among the 20,251 present,

Nicolas Schmid barely had a save to make, such was the level of the Blues’ remarkable display as they scrapped and fought with admirable conviction.

Inspired by the recalled Milli Alli, who rolled back the months following a plummet in form, and a tremendous display from the ever-outstanding Regan Poole, it was a complete team performance from Pompey.

Now with eight points from four games since QPR have lifted the Blues into 19th place, four points above the relegation zone with four matches remaining.

No wonder the Fratton faithful were single ‘We are staying up’ at the final whistle following another superb display from these Blues battlers.

Mousinho had made four changes to the side which claimed a priceless victory at Middlesbrough on Saturday.

With goal hero Conor Chaplin unable to play against his parent club, John Swift came into the number 10 position, while Conor Shaughnessy returned for Madiodio Dia.

Mousinho also changed both wingers, with Milli Alli and Adrian Segecic handed recalls in place of Keshi Anderson and Gustavo Caballero.

Caballero came off at the Riverside Stadium with a tight groin, ruling him out of the squad, while Anderson had previously started successive games after returning from a two-month injury absence.

There was also a surprise among the substitutes, with forgotten man Florian Bianchini returning to the squad after four-and-a-half months out through injury.

The Frenchman also had to be registered for the 25-man Football League squad to enable his involvement, thereby taking up the final available spot.

It was the Tractor Boys who kicked the game off and, on seven minutes, a superb ball inside Jordan Williams by Darnell Furlong released Kasey McAteer down the right.

He pulled the ball back to pick out George Hirst, whose shot was blocked by Shaughnessy and deflected for the game’s first corner.

It hadn’t taken the visitors long to pick up a rhythm as they looked every inch one of the best sides in the Championship, although, on 18 minutes, Swift picked out Williams’ overlapping run down the left for Pompey.

The left-back then cut inside onto his right foot and produced a curling cross which was flicked on by the head of Bishop and flew agonisingly wide of the far post with keeper Christian Walton beaten.

Then Williams fed Alli down the left, who used his pace superbly to streak down the outside before firing in an angled shot which was pushed out by Walton.

Swift followed up, yet the ball took an awkward bounce and his right-footed half-volley flew harmlessly wide.

Mousinho’s men were growing into the game and, on 27 minutes, Alli let fly from 30-yards with a ferocious right-footed shot which Walton spectacularly tipped over the bar.

Alli was causing plenty of problems and, when Nicolas Schmid crashed a pass down the middle of the pitch, the winger bustled with two Ipswich defenders, leaving Cedric Kipre on the floor.

His subsequent left-footed shot went wide, but the whistle had already gone for a push on Kipre in the build-up, so would never have counted.

On 42 minutes, however, the Blues had their lead.

Segecic’s right-wing corner was superbly flighted and there was Shaughnessy with a headed finish from five yards to put the Blues 1-0 up.

Fratton Park erupted - and they were celebrating once again just two minutes later as it became 2-0.

Alli laid the ball back to Dozzell down the left and his first-time cross caused havoc, with Swift having two shots blocked in the ensuing scramble.

But there was Bishop to pounce from close range and force the ball home for his fourth of the season in the same Milton End when he netted against Arsenal.

It was a stunned Fratton Park at half-time, coming to terms with witnessing two goals in 130 seconds for Mousinho’s men.

There were no substitutions for Ipswich at the break as McKenna kept faith in his starting XI to dig them out of trouble they had created for themselves.

Yet the visitors continued struggling to find a way through, while the Blues were chasing and fighting hard, while threatening on the break.

Ipswich made a triple substitution on 58 minutes, throwing on the attacking talents of Anis Mehmeti and Jaden Philogene, huge danger men.

Yet it was the Blues who came agonisingly close to the next goal, with Alli clipping into a delightful cross to the far post where Segecic’s diving header from six-yards out flew just wide of the far post.

Ipswich had a rare shot on target in the 67th minute, although Marcelino Nunez’s shot from distance was straight at Schmid, who comfortably held it.

Pompey made their first substitution on 70 minutes, with Swift replaced by Anderson, who slotted into the number 10 role.

There was late drama in four minutes of stoppage time when Poole cleared Dara O’Shea’s header off the line and then Philogene’s shot was acrobatically stopped by Schmid.

But it made no difference as the Blues secured their victory to climb further away from that trapdoor into League One.