It’s already been a busy summer transfer window for those associated with Portsmouth in particular.
Following their long-awaited promotion back to the Championship as League One champions last season, the club now has to assemble a squad capable of competing in the second division.
As a result, several new signings have already arrived at Fratton Park since the transfer market started in June.
A total of five senior players have been added to John Mousinho’s squad.
It has already been a busy summer transfer window for those affiliated with Portsmouth in particular.
Following their long-awaited promotion back to the Championship as League One champions last season, the club must now put together a squad capable of competing in the second division.
As a result, several new additions have arrived at Fratton Park since the transfer market started in June.
In total, John Mousinho’s team has grown by five senior players.
They already have one Australian international on their books in the form of striker Kusini Yengi, and another, Sammy Silvera, is poised to spend this season on loan with the club from Middlesbrough. Alex Robertson, a Socceroos international, was on loan on the south coast last season and is a guy Mousinho would like to bring back this summer.
They now have a hat-trick of Australian players in their roster, with Farrell joining them, albeit this may not have appeared to be a necessary addition at first.
With Connor Ogilvie and Jack Sparkes on the books at Fratton Park at the time of the Australian’s arrival, it appeared that Mousinho had three
There are several left-back choices to consider. That may not have appeared essential, given the difficulty Mousinho would face in keeping three players satisfied with game time while competing for a single starting slot.
Indeed, Portsmouth would not have wanted to decrease squad and budget space to the point where they lose depth in other areas of the pitch.
But, given the business that has been done since Farrell’s arrival, the decision to bring him to Pompey now appears to make more sense.
Jack Sparkes, Peterborough United deal shows John Mousinho foresight with Jacob Farrell
On Friday, it was revealed that Sparkes had concluded his departure from Fratton Park.
The 23-year-old has returned to League One, signing for Peterborough United, where he looks set to replace another left-back, Harrison Burrows, who has joined Sheffield United. Posh had already signed Crewe Alexandra talent Rio Adebisi, but he is out for four months with an injury and can also play right-back.
Sparkes had only joined Portsmouth from Exeter City last summer, but moving him on now with Farrell in his place may be considered prudent, and it demonstrates that Mousinho had the foresight to replace Farrell well before his departure was confirmed.
With 90 senior matches under his belt from his stint with Central Coast Mariners, the Australian appears to be ready to contend with Ogilvie for a spot in the Pompey starting 11.
Nonetheless, at 21 years old, he is two years younger than Sparkes, suggesting that he may now be a longer-term asset to the Fratton Park club than his predecessor was.
It’s also worth mentioning that Sparkes signed a two-year contract when he arrived to Portsmouth last summer.
As a result, this could have been their last chance to collect a price for him, which they have now accomplished with his sale to Peterborough.
That also ensures that they will have recouped at least a portion of their investment in Farrell, leaving them with funds to invest in other deals this summer.
The Australian’s contract is also significantly longer than Sparkes’, so they now have more prolonged stability in terms of left-back alternatives.
With all of this in mind, it appears that what appeared to be a shocking deal for Portsmouth has swiftly evolved into a very logical one for John Mousinho’s team.
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