‘We’re aware’: the plan to stop Portsmouth goal machine and halt play-off charge

And head coach Mark Jackson has outlined what Pompey’s opponents have to do to halt the marksman’s supply of goals.

BIshop goes in search of his 20th league goal of the season at Stadium MK – and add to his total of 23 finishes for the campaign. MK Dons go into the game in a rich vein of form, however, with Jackson nominated for League One’s manager of the month and his side on a run of three wins and a draw.

Jackson acknowledged Bishop is a clear threat to extending that run with not only his potency but link-up play needing attention, but the former Leeds man feels there’s the nous on his back line to deal with the £500,000 arrival from Accrington.

Jackson said in the MK Dons pre-match press conference: ‘We’re aware of certain players and what the threat is for us. Luckily for us we’re in a good position with the players we have available on our defensive line, I think that helps us deal with players like that a little bit better. We have experience in the back line as well now.

‘I would never totally change what we want to do for one player, but there needs to be an awareness this player can hurt us if given the opportunities. We have to minimise the opportunities for a player like that, and we have to set up in a way where we can stop the feed into him, the passes into him.

‘But also when it goes into him he’s a really strong player, and they use him as a link player as well as scoring goals. We have to really threaten that. I think we have the players on that back line to combat that and sniff out any danger he might pose, but we 100 per cent have to be mindful of any players on that amount of goals.’