Match Pack: Portsmouth vs Saints
It's south coast derby weekend, as Southampton make the short journey to Fratton Park to take on Portsmouth in the Sky Bet Championship. Get clued up ahead of Sunday's showdown with our Match Pack...
THE MATCH
Portsmouth vs Southampton
Sky Bet Championship
Fratton Park
Sunday 25th January, midday GMT
THE OFFICIALS
Referee: Lewis Smith
Assistants: Alex James, Alistair Nelson
Fourth official: Andrew Kitchen
THE KITS
Both clubs will be in their traditional home colours on derby day, with Saints wearing red and white striped shirts, black shorts and white socks. Portsmouth will be in blue shirts, white shorts and red socks.
TICKETS
Saints' allocation of 2,700 tickets has long since sold out. For those without a ticket, there are plenty of ways to watch the action from St Mary's.
LIVE COVERAGE
The game will be screened live on Sky Sports+ with coverage starting five minutes before kick-off. Saints Play match passes are available for supporters in certain overseas territories.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Saints returned to winning ways on Wednesday night against Sheffield United, ending a run of seven Championship games without a victory.
It tees the team up nicely for a first league derby at Fratton Park since 2011, with Saints hunting a first league away win over their rivals in 50 years – a 1-0 triumph back in 1976 courtesy of a late Mick Channon goal.
There have been memorable results in cup competitions, including Steve Moran’s last-gasp goal in a 1984 FA Cup tie, and a 4-0 thrashing in the Carabao Cup on Saints’ last visit in 2019, but maximum points have proved elusive in all four away league meetings since ’76.
Portsmouth come into the derby after taking four points from back-to-back away games at Sheffield Wednesday (1-0) and Watford (1-1), and have only lost one of their last seven in the Championship, but that was a crushing 5-0 defeat at Bristol City on New Year’s Day.
The hosts could drop into the relegation zone by the time the game kicks off, with Pompey currently sitting one point above the bottom three ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.
TEAM NEWS
Portsmouth: Key players Josh Murphy, Callum Lang and Conor Shaughnessy are all set to be missing for the hosts.
Against Watford on Wednesday, manager John Mousinho had to shuffle full-back Connor Ogilvie to centre-back alongside Regan Poole, with the inexperienced Ibane Bowat his only other fit central defender.
Saints: Tonda Eckert welcomed back Shea Charles as a late substitute in midweek following a three-month lay-off, while Oriol Romeu completed 62 minutes for the Under-21s on Thursday following an ankle problem.
Mads Roerslev could be close to a return, while James Bree is available following the conclusion of his loan spell at Charlton.
THE MANAGERS
John Mousinho: "At St Mary’s, we set out to not let Southampton get a foothold in the game and we did that really well after three or four minutes. We were dominant in the first half, so naturally the atmosphere dropped. It became a bit more difficult for us in the second half.
"But I suppose a drab 0-0 away from home with the pressure of that first south coast derby wasn’t a terrible result for us. I expect it to be a different game on Sunday."
Tonda Eckert: “It’s the most beautiful game of the year, the most beautiful and the most important one. It means everything. When you come to these games it’s a different feeling. It just feels different. We need to use that energy and fuel to transfer that to the pitch.
“We always say cold heads and hot hearts. It’s a balance. Obviously we need to take the emotion of the game, because it’s not a game like any other, and at the same time there are some moments when we need to have a clear idea and a clear mind. That is going to be the balance for us to find for Sunday.”
ONES TO WATCH
Adrian Segečić: Scoring in each of Portsmouth's last two matches, Segečić's goals are proving crucial in keeping his team out of the relegation zone.
The Australian youth international, who tends to operate from the right flank, is Pompey's top scorer with six goals this season.
Leo Scienza: Back in the goals against Sheffield United in midweek, Scienza dominated the Player of the Match voting on the Saints App, signalling a timely return to form ahead of the derby.
The Brazilian actually made his debut against Portsmouth at St Mary's, albeit only fleetingly as a substitute, and could be the man to create something out of nothing if this game is as tense as the reverse fixture was back in September.
TOP SCORERS
Portsmouth
Goals:
Segečić 6
Devlin 3
Lang, Bishop 2
Assists:
Murphy 6
Chaplin, Swift, Segečić 2
Devlin, Williams, Bianchini 1
Saints
Goals:
Armstrong 11
Azaz 7
Manning, Harwood-Bellis, Archer, Scienza 4
Assists:
Armstrong, Azaz, Scienza, Fellows 4
Manning 3
Harwood-Bellis, Fraser 2
FORM GUIDE
Portsmouth
Watford (a) SBC: D 1-1 (Segečić)
Sheff Wed (a) SBC: W 1-0 (Segečić)
Arsenal (h) FAC3: L 1-4 (Bishop)
Bristol City (a) SBC: L 0-5
Charlton (h) SBC: W 2-1 (Shaughnessy, Yang)
Saints
Sheff Utd (h) SBC: W 1-0 (Scienza)
Hull (h) SBC: L 1-2 (Stewart)
Doncaster (a) FAC3: W 3-2 (Bragg, Archer, Matsuki)
Middlesbrough (a) SBC: L 0-4
Millwall (h) SBC: D 0-0
HEAD TO HEAD
Played: 40
Portsmouth wins: 9
Draws: 11
Saints wins: 20
LAST FIVE MEETINGS
Sep 2025: Saints 0-0 Portsmouth Championship
Sep 2019: Portsmouth 0-4 Saints Carabao Cup third round (Ings 2, Cédric, Redmond)
Apr 2012: Saints 2-2 Portsmouth Championship (Sharp 2)
Dec 2011: Portsmouth 1-1 Saints Championship (Lambert)
Feb 2010: Saints 1-4 Portsmouth FA Cup fifth round (Lambert)
KEEP UP TO DATE
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