The truth behind Portsmouth's most unconventional transfer of last summer - and its remarkable success

It was a left-field signing which proved to be one of the most outstanding pieces of Pompey recruitment during last summer.

Yet while several deserve credit for the capture of Nicolas Schmid - it is Joe Prodomo who has been earmarked as the true driving force.

That’s the verdict of Rich Hughes, who is adamant the goalkeeping coach’s influence in signing the Austrian Bundesliga stopper was pivotal.

As a relative unknown, Schmid arrived at Fratton Park in August 2024 for an undisclosed fee from BW Linz to provide competition to Will Norris and Jordan Archer in Pompey’s goalkeeping position.

He would end the campaign as John Mousinho’s undisputed number one, having captured two supporter Player of the Season awards and hastened Norris’ exit just six months after winning League One.

And sporting director Rich Hughes, who had initially identified Schmid along with head of recruitment Brad Wall, is adamant it is Prodomo who warrants the praise - not him.

Portsmouth sporting chief refuses to take credit for classy summer capture

He told The News: ‘There’s a part of me that can just sit here and take all the credit for Nico, but Joe Prodomo, our goalie coach, is one of the biggest badgers in football. He knows everyone.

‘We do a lot of work in different leagues, so Brad and I were watching a lot of the Austrian league - and we saw Nico pop up in terms of an interesting profile, good size, he made saves and kicks it a mile.

‘We sent it to Joe, he did a lot of in-depth work, and then we circled back round to me, Brad, Joe and John to go through his games, go through his big moments and identify the bits we like.

‘We realised there was enough of a profile. Despite being 27 at the time, as a goalkeeper that is not a big age, he hasn’t got loads of miles on the tyres. So we brought him in.

‘The bit which goes under the radar is the work Joe has done and the training work which has gone into Nico to help make him better as well.

‘It’s a really pleasing one when they work like that, it’s a nice success story. He has been excellent this year, coupled with our upturn in form, and has been a big part of that as well.

‘We liked his game, we felt it was suited for England, but there is that difficult bit that perhaps if we don’t have the tough night against Stoke, then you don’t have that sliding doors moment. Will comes out of the team - and then it all changes for Nico.’

Portsmouth hand Barnsley man chance to secure his future

Such is Pompey’s immense confidence in Schmid, they were comfortable leaving him out for the final two matches in order to cast their eye over Ben Killip.

With the former Barnsley man’s contract expiring at the season’s end, they were keen to see him in action before deciding whether to offer a fresh Fratton Park deal.

Instead Schmid, who totalled 36 appearances in his maiden season in English football, occupied the bench at Sheffield Wednesday and Hill.

Portsmouth targeting more transfer ‘gems’

Yet he remains an outstanding example of clever recruitment - and Hughes believes many more are available.

He added ‘There are gems out there, There’s a lot of work which goes into it. You need a bit of an element of luck as well, while Nico took to it really well. We’re always going to try to find value and find good players.

‘Where we shifted to in January was spending a significant amount on Hayden Matthews and a player that we really like the upside of. We also had the backing from the owners to go and bring him in.

‘We want to keep growing, we want to keep bringing these players in and keep finding people who we think are going to make the team better.’

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