Portsmouth midfielder reveals reasons for revival as ex-Bristol City, Luton Town and Lincoln City man’s season kicks into gear

The Wales international believes turning our for his country on the game’s biggest stage has invigorated his confidence at club level.

And Morrell has now set his sights on maintaining his fine form for the Blues over the remainder of the season.

The 26-year-old’s form this year has been one of the big plus points for Pompey, with the midfielder finding a consistently high level of performance.

Morrell feels a combination of injury and the onset of the World Cup contributed to a mixed bag of displays earlier in the season.

But then going to Qatar offered the platform for the displays we’ve seen since his return.

Morrell said: ‘I feel fit and I feel strong.

‘I’m always a player who takes a couple of games, even after a pre-season, to get going.

‘I think that has been the case here. I missed the back end of pre-season and I was always chasing my fitness at the start of the season.

‘Then I had the World Cup and that was always around the corner.

‘That’s something I’ve always been honest about, even if it was never a case of it being anything other than a little bit of a distraction.

‘I think going to the World Cup actually gave me the confidence and belief in myself again.

‘It means so much for me to play for this club - it always has done and it always will.

‘So I’m personally happy, but I’ll never be too content because I’m don’t want to get too comfortable.

‘That certainly won’t be the case here because I’m always trying to be the best I can be - and ‘I’m certainly my harshest critic.

‘Playing for this football club brings pressure and it’s something I try to thrive on.’

One of the hallmarks of Morrell’s upturn in form has been his determination to get on the ball in an effort to set the tone for Pompey.

Not only that, but the former Bristol City, Lincoln and Luton man has responded well to taking on more attacking duties in a switch to a 4-3-3 formation under John Mousinho.

Morrell believes confidence on the ball is a player with his attributes needs to have.

He said: ‘If you’re 5ft 6in, not the quickest and not the strongest and you’re not frightened to take the ball in tight areas, you’re in trouble.

‘It’s something I’ve never shied away from.

‘I’m a technical footballer and it’s something I work on.

‘If I’m not comfortable taking the ball in tight areas

‘I want to be one of the ones the team look to in an effort to give us some control.

‘I have to back myself because that’s my strength and I need that little bit of arrogance on the pitch to say “give me the ball”.

‘With every game that comes that confidence increases, so I’m pleased but not overly happy because I want to get better.

‘I want to play every game until the end of the season.

‘Setting targets is not helpful at this stage.

‘We know the expectations here, but at the minute it’s about trying to get back to being the best version of ourselves - and see where that take us.’