Tony Adams has changed so much from his early playing days to manager that sometimes it’s hard to take him seriously as Portsmouth boss.
Yet Adams takes himself very seriously now. He is also in a very serious situation.
It’s rare that you are given a dream job as a manager and Fratton Park has certainly been no bed of roses for Adams.
But he does have enough quality in his squad to stay up, I think they will stay up.
The biggest fear for Portsmouth is the long-term future of the club.
Adams was a terrific fighter as a player. A hard-living, no-nonsense defender who captained both Arsenal and England wearing his heart on his sleeve.
He is a recovering alcoholic who has reinvented himself as a very rational and very serious character. Sometimes it appears as if he is trying to convince people that he’s a deep thinker as if it’s the right thing to do.
Adams’ managerial career did not work out at Wycombe but, via Holland, he came back as Harry Redknapp’s No.2 before being promoted when his former boss left for Tottenham.
Frankly, they were impossible shoes to fill. Portsmouth had just won the FA Cup, they had reached Europe and Redknapp had brought in internationals and the club had rarely had it so good.
But Redknapp was also clever in choosing his time to leave. He left at the top and, in reality, the only way was down.
The owners have signaled their intent to sell and the star players are already being sold off. As soon as you sell Lassana Diarra and replace him with Hayden Mullins you are making it pretty clear which way the club is heading.
There were others who wanted to bail out as soon as Redknapp left, and Portsmouth certainly miss Jermain Defoe’s goals. But Adams has also been shrewd. He’s managed to keep the majority of the squad together and has made good additions.
Jermaine Pennant was a great piece of business. How he persuaded Liverpool to allow him to go out on loan with his contract up at the end of the season is anyone’s guess, especially when he is a brilliant crosser of the ball.
Together with David James, John Utaka, Peter Crouch, Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin there is quality there. If you pick apart their performances then you will see that generally they have been good and solid, hard to beat even.
They got thumped at Fulham last week which was the exception and left Adams’ job in danger. He certainly has to pull it round.
But I think he is growing into the job. I was worried at first when, after his first game at Liverpool, he was talking about himself in the third person.
But Adams seems to have found reality and one thing is abundantly clear from their performances - the players are playing for him. I expect them to get a draw against Liverpool and that will be a huge boost for Portsmouth.
Fratton Park is a hard place to go and therefore Adams will get Portsmouth out of danger.
But what worries me far more is the future. I am given to believe the club has 16 players on their books who are out of contract at the end of the season. Glen Johnson, James, Crouch and Campbell could all go in the summer.
Who will replace them? Will there be any money? Sadly for Pompey, even if they get through this season there may be more troubles ahead.
For Liverpool, the big concerns are this season. Sadly, they have gone from being top of the table, riding high to crashing out of the FA Cup and being a rudderless ship again.
Selling Robbie Keane with no obvious replacement made no sense. Crikey, the Keane deal has been in the offing for weeks so to not line someone up is just criminal.
Steven Gerrard is out for three weeks, Fernando Torres is lacking match fitness and sharpness and who is to come in? No one.
Liverpool rely so heavily on Torres and Gerrard that they will have to play in 95 per cent of Liverpool’s remaining games to win anything - and I’m not sure that will happen.
Yet Adams takes himself very seriously now. He is also in a very serious situation.
It’s rare that you are given a dream job as a manager and Fratton Park has certainly been no bed of roses for Adams.
But he does have enough quality in his squad to stay up, I think they will stay up.
The biggest fear for Portsmouth is the long-term future of the club.
Adams was a terrific fighter as a player. A hard-living, no-nonsense defender who captained both Arsenal and England wearing his heart on his sleeve.
He is a recovering alcoholic who has reinvented himself as a very rational and very serious character. Sometimes it appears as if he is trying to convince people that he’s a deep thinker as if it’s the right thing to do.
Adams’ managerial career did not work out at Wycombe but, via Holland, he came back as Harry Redknapp’s No.2 before being promoted when his former boss left for Tottenham.
Frankly, they were impossible shoes to fill. Portsmouth had just won the FA Cup, they had reached Europe and Redknapp had brought in internationals and the club had rarely had it so good.
But Redknapp was also clever in choosing his time to leave. He left at the top and, in reality, the only way was down.
The owners have signaled their intent to sell and the star players are already being sold off. As soon as you sell Lassana Diarra and replace him with Hayden Mullins you are making it pretty clear which way the club is heading.
There were others who wanted to bail out as soon as Redknapp left, and Portsmouth certainly miss Jermain Defoe’s goals. But Adams has also been shrewd. He’s managed to keep the majority of the squad together and has made good additions.
Jermaine Pennant was a great piece of business. How he persuaded Liverpool to allow him to go out on loan with his contract up at the end of the season is anyone’s guess, especially when he is a brilliant crosser of the ball.
Together with David James, John Utaka, Peter Crouch, Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin there is quality there. If you pick apart their performances then you will see that generally they have been good and solid, hard to beat even.
They got thumped at Fulham last week which was the exception and left Adams’ job in danger. He certainly has to pull it round.
But I think he is growing into the job. I was worried at first when, after his first game at Liverpool, he was talking about himself in the third person.
But Adams seems to have found reality and one thing is abundantly clear from their performances - the players are playing for him. I expect them to get a draw against Liverpool and that will be a huge boost for Portsmouth.
Fratton Park is a hard place to go and therefore Adams will get Portsmouth out of danger.
But what worries me far more is the future. I am given to believe the club has 16 players on their books who are out of contract at the end of the season. Glen Johnson, James, Crouch and Campbell could all go in the summer.
Who will replace them? Will there be any money? Sadly for Pompey, even if they get through this season there may be more troubles ahead.
For Liverpool, the big concerns are this season. Sadly, they have gone from being top of the table, riding high to crashing out of the FA Cup and being a rudderless ship again.
Selling Robbie Keane with no obvious replacement made no sense. Crikey, the Keane deal has been in the offing for weeks so to not line someone up is just criminal.
Steven Gerrard is out for three weeks, Fernando Torres is lacking match fitness and sharpness and who is to come in? No one.
Liverpool rely so heavily on Torres and Gerrard that they will have to play in 95 per cent of Liverpool’s remaining games to win anything - and I’m not sure that will happen.
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