Portsmouth not pursuing move for Championship midfielder after reports emerge linking them with Blackburn man

Reports emerged over the weekend suggesting the Blues were in advanced talks to bring in 29-year-old, after his release from Championship Blackburn.

The News understands that’s not the case, however, and the popular figure at Ewood Park isn’t a name which the club are chasing with any intensity.

Smallwood has made 87 appearances under Tony Mowbray since joining the club from Rotherham in 2017.

He was an ever-present as Rovers were promoted from League One in his maiden campaign at the club and followed that up with 33 outings in their first season at Championship level.

The former Middlesbrough trainee fell out of favour last term, however, under Mowbray and made just two Carabao Cup appearances.

He was told he could leave the club last term but opted to stay at Blackburn, where he remains highly regarded by fans, before weighing up his options as a free agent this summer.

Smallwood also has a League One promotion on his CV with Rotherham, where he went on to pick up a wealth of Championship experience.

Pompey are in the market for a midfielder with three players at present competing for the two defensive roles in Jackett’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.

Ben Close, Tom Naylor and Bryn Morris are the men currently contracted in that area for next season.

Pompey remain keen on Cameron McGeehan, after he arrived from Barnsley in January.

McGeehan still has a year on his contract at Oakwell, with another loan move the most likely scenario at present.

Jackett has made no secret of his admiration for the former Luton man, but with McGeehan believed to command wages of around £6,000 per week that would make him Pompey’s earner.

That leaves a loan where the Blues would pay a portion of his wages as the smoothest path to a deal, an outcome made more likely by Gerhard Struber’s side surviving in the Championship.

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