Portsmouth winger Ronan Curtis named in EFL on Quest's League One team of the season

But there’s no room for Christian Burgess in the starting XI picked by former Swindon and Luton forward Sam Parkin, who is a pundit on the highlights programme.

That’s despite the centre-back claiming the News/Sports Mail Pompey player of the season award following his best ever campaign in a Blues shirt.

The defender, who has since departed Fratton Park to join Belgian second-tier side Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, pipped Curtis to the prize, which is voted for by the fans.

However, it appears Curtis’ performances have caught the eye more at a national level.

And that’s understandable given his 14 goals and 12 assists as Pompey’s promotion hopes ended in a play-off penalty shootout defeat at the hands of Oxford.

That saw the winger top the Blues’ goalscoring charts alongside John Marquis and continue the fine form he’s shown since joining the club from League of Ireland side Derry City in 2018.

It’s form that has also seen the Irishman linked with potential moves away from Fratton Park.

Brentford have emerged as the latest club to show an interest in the 24-year-old.

However, speaking to The News last week, manager Kenny Jackett said he had yet to receive and bids or enquiries for Curtis or goalkeeper Alex Bass, who has been linked with a move to Crystal Palace and Middlesbrough.

Curtis, rightfully, takes in place in the EFL on Quest’s team of the season’s forward line, which also includes the division’s top scorer, Ivan Toney (Peterborough, 26 goals) and Oxford United attacker James Henry (14 goals).

In-demand Toney is the Posh’s only representative in the combined XI, after they finished the season outside the play-off places following the use of an unweighted points-per-game formula to decide final league places.

However, James is joined by U’s team-mate Rob Dickie, who impressed for Oxford in a central-defensive role when Pompey took on the Kassam Stadium outfit over two legs last month.

Like Toney, he too is in high demand this summer as clubs continue to circulate.

And it was his impressive season-long form, alongside that of Coventry’s Michael Rose and Rotherham’s Michael Ihiekwe – two players who experienced automatic promotion with their respective sides – that sees them take a place in the Quest team of the year.

Burgess can therefore have no complaints when you have that trio, sat in front of Sky Blues keeper Marko Marosi, in a preferred 3-4-3 formation.

With the Blues’ engine room arguably failing to kick into gear this term, it’s no surprise that no Pompey midfielder makes Parkins’ four-man midfield.

Indeed, it’s populated mostly by players who inspired their teams to promotion last season, with Liam Walsh (Coventry), Dan Barlaser (Rotherham) – who was last summer being linked with a move to Fratton Park – and Joe Jacobson (Wycombe) getting the nod for their displays over the course of the campaign.

That leaves Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien to take the last remaining place in the Quest team – a player who most teams at League One level would love in their starting XIs.

Meanwhile, unsurprisingly, Gareth Ainsworth – who guided the Chairboys to promotion via the play-offs – gets the vote for manger of the season.