'You want to up the level' - Portsmouth 'transfer bids' for NAC Breda keeper welcomed as Colby Bishop lessons learnt
Reports of Pompey bids for NAC Breda goalkeeper Daniel Bielica emerged during the week.
‘An evolution of standards’.
That’s how The News’ Jordan Cross summed up Pompey’s reported interest in NAC Breda keeper Daniel Bielica as he gave a potential move for the 27-year-old shot-stopper the thumbs up.
The experienced Blues writer welcomed reports from the continent during the week that the Fratton Park side had seen two bids rejected by the Dutch outfit for their Polish No1.
It’s not clear at this moment whether Pompey will return with a third offer for Bielica, who has another year left on his Rat Verlegh Stadion contract.
Yet Cross likes the Blues’ thinking as they bid to provide extra competition for first-team regular Nicolas Schmid.
And he used Pompey’s lack of quality cover for striker Colby Bishop last term as a means to highlight his enthusiasm for a deal.
Pompey can’t make the same mistake again
Schimd has been Pompey’s first choice keeper ever since he dislodged League One title-winner Will Norris from the team within weeks of joining from Blau Weiss Linz in the summer of 2024.
Since then the Austrian has racked up 70 appearances for the Fratton Park outfit and recorded 15 clean sheets. And while he’s largely been considered a standout acquisition, there have been times when his form has been brought into question.
John Mousinho has resisted the urge to change his keeper on those rare occasions, however, with the head coach keeping faith in the giant stopper despite the presence of the likes of Josef Bursik and Ben Killip
Whether that’s down to a lack of trust in those below Schmid in the packing order or pure faith in the Austrian remains unknown.
But Cross believes it might be the former and warned Pompey can’t afford to make the same mistake they did with Bishop last season.
The Blues went into their 2025-26 season without any serious back-up options to their main frontman. And they very nearly paid the price with their Championship status as the former Accrington man ended the campaign with just three league goals.
‘Pompey took a calculated risk’
When asked in the latest episode of Pompey Talk whether he was surprised to see the Blues chasing a new keeper, Cross replied: ‘You've got Josef Bursik, who is injured, and Ben Killip, who seems to be below Joe in the pecking order.
‘So you've really got Nico Schmid established as first choice and then quite a drop-off to anyone that's near to challenging Nico.
‘So I think they want to get someone perhaps a bit closer to him and I understand why you'd want to do that because as much as I really value Nico and he's been excellent, there has been some fluctuations in form.
‘I don't think you're at a place at the moment with the options where you've got anyone even remotely close to ultimately making that call to drop Nico if his form was to go off a cliff.
‘I don't think it will happen and I hope it doesn't happen. But we didn't expect that to happen with Colby Bishop last season and Pompey took a calculated risk for good reasons with their transfer budget on not recruiting underneath Colby and it came unstuck.
‘So they want to minimise those risks and ultimately it's just an evolution of standards, isn't it?
‘You want to up the level, you want to continually drive standards and improve things and this guy being pursued is an example of just that.’
Cross added at the time of recording Pompey Talk, he had no intel on whether reports linking Pompey with Bieica had substance.
However, he added: ‘I have no personal inroads on this at the moment. But sometimes some deals come up and some stories come up and as an experienced journalist, you know what’s a load of rubbish.
‘If it’s got five or six clubs attached to it then that's an agent putting that one out.
‘This one smells right, doesn't it? It looks legitimate.’