Portsmouth's transfer model - why I am concerned too many signings are for tomorrow and not enough for today

Supporter dissatisfaction among some wasn’t driven by the Norwich loanee blazing over in a Carabao Cup penalty shoot-out defeat at the hands of Peterborough, early criticism was more nuanced than that.

Presented with his first loan spell, the then 20-year-old noticeably faded in games as he adapted to first-team physical requirements, while he was particularly wasteful in front of goal, despite an impressive Academy background.

Perhaps crucially, he was challenged with playing on the left-hand side, a role he was unfamiliar with despite being left footed, seeking the assistance of Uefa A qualified coach-cum-kitman Shaun North to come to terms with the requirements.

Nonetheless, boosted by John Mousinho’s unwavering belief, while reaping the considerable benefits of featuring regularly in a winning League One team, Kamara flourished.

It’s a recruitment model Pompey sought to replicate in the summer, identifying young ‘first-team ready’ talent to bolster a hard-earned Championship return following a 12-year absence.

Considering the undoubted recruitment successes of last season and taking into account a Blues playing budget among the lowest in a Championship swimming in debt, maintaining the approach had its logic.

However, 11 league matches in, Mousinho’s men are bottom of the Championship. As a consequence, it’s natural their 15 summer arrivals are coming under growing scrutiny.

And the worry is Pompey have signed too many players for tomorrow - and not nearly enough for today.

Take this month’s trip to Stoke as a striking example, with only Will Norris, Marlon Pack, Josh Murphy and Tom McIntyre among the starting XI to have previously featured at Championship level before this season.

In the case of Norris, it was a single outing for Wolves, plus three Premier League games, although he has occupied the bench on plenty of occasions as a back-up goalkeeper.

In fairness, Mark O’Mahony who also lined-up against the Potters, has three Premier League appearances for Brighton, but nothing in the Championship.

Regardless, like Abu Kamara little more than 12 months ago, a considerable number of players are challenged with performing at a level unfamiliar to them, some of which having never even featured in this country before.

Learning on the job above League One is proving considerably trickier for inexperienced youngsters and established senior players alike - hence a current placing of 24th.

That’s not to say the summer recruits lack talent and will be unable to develop into fine signings for Pompey. That could well happen tomorrow - but they are desperately needed today.

Sporting director Rich Hughes has already demonstrated he possesses an outstanding eye for talent, overseeing the construction of a League One title-winning side without the financial outlay afforded many other clubs. He deserves the supporters’ trust.

This summer he added Harvey Blair, who turned 21 last month and had one Carabao Cup game for Liverpool, while teenager Abdoulaye Kamara had previously solely represented Borussia Dortmund’s reserves in the third tier of the Bundesliga.

Reuben Swann arrived from AFC Sudbury and is currently a resident substitute for the Hawks, the injury-plagued Jacob Farrell is a 21-year-old from Central Coast Mariners, while Freddie Potts had never played league football above League One, although featured twice for West Ham as a substitute in the Europa Conference League.

Ibane Bowat, unfortunately sidelined for the season through injury, had featured regularly in Austria and Holland, but never in English senior football, while Middlesbrough loanee Sammy Silvera started 12 Championship games last term in his maiden campaign in this country.

Goalkeeper Nicolas Schmid is no kid, while Elias Sorensen is aged 25 and had previously been on Newcastle’s books without featuring - with the pair journeying from Austria and Denmark respectively to land on the south coast.

Many may prove exceptional signings, fantastic servants for this football club and sold for eye-watering profit having developed and flourished at Fratton Park. Certainly it would be foolish to write off their talents before October has even ended.

Yet that exists in the future, a destiny nobody can confidently predict. Rub your crystal ball, read your tea leaves, consult your horoscope, but what lies in store cannot be accurately foreseen.

In the here and now, this Pompey team are presently worryingly short of consistency and quality to collect sustained positive results. The league table is damning.

That’s not to say it won’t change and the Blues’ fate is fixed for relegation. It’s entirely plausible for a team to rise to the challenge, for players’ form to improve, for youngsters to blossom in their development, just look at Abu Kamara.

That’s for tomorrow, though. But what about today?