Why Danny Cowley is starting to feel vindicated for his Portsmouth transfer choices after showing Lincoln, Fleetwood, Charlton and Oxford aces the door

The Blues chief has overseen seismic changes since he replaced Kenny Jackett in the dugout in March 2021 – which he believes the club is beginning to benefit from.

Last summer, he welcomed 14 new arrivals to PO4, as a number of senior players such as Craig MacGillivray, Jack Whatmough, Ryan Williams and Tom Naylor made way for fresh faces.

Meanwhile, in January five more were added to his squad as Cowley also said goodbye to seven senior players – including John Marquis, Ellis Harrison and Lee Brown.

There’s no doubt, his first full year in charge has been a rollercoaster – both on and off the pitch.

That has caused concern among supporters.

But individual performances in recent weeks from new Fratton Park favourites – coinciding with in-form Pompey now fighting for an unlikely top-six place – has now eased those worries.

That means Pompey will go in search of a seventh league win in eight games when they travel to Ipswich today.

But Cowley has revealed he’s still not satisfied.

Despite recognising the progress made, he still wants more.

He told The News: ‘I think for us, it’s just about going about our work quietly and keep trying to make good decisions for this football club.

‘Of course, when the team does well, your decisions are vindicated or the work you do is highlighted and spoken about in a positive way.

‘We also know when things haven’t gone so well, we’ve worked really hard and made some good decisions and progress off the pitch.

‘For us, it’s just to stay focused and keep working hard. The better we do, the harder we work and we’ll see where that takes us.’

One of the tough decisions Cowley opted to make in January was to shake up his stuttering frontline.

As a result, Marquis and Harrison were allowed to leave for undisclosed fees, before Gassan Ahadme’s loan was cancelled.

In their place arrived Aiden O’Brien and Tyler Walker, to accompany George Hirst in attack.

And with the trio scoring 10 goals between them in the past six matches, the Blues boss is buoyed by the togetherness within his squad.

He added: ‘Do you know what I loved? If you look at the first goal (against Crewe) some celebrate with Connor (Ogilvie), some celebrate with George and they all come back together and celebrate.

‘The second goal, when Tyler scores. The delight on some of their faces when he scored defines spirit and togetherness. That’s something that is growing in this group by the day.’

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