Portsmouth attacker left frustrated at break in his season

Portsmouth forward Marcus Harness has expressed his frustration at his enforced 17-day break as he looks to get his season up and running again. 

The former Burton Albion man has been serving a three-math ban and was due to make his return this weekend had it not been for Rotherham’s run into the EFL Trophy final.

It now means Harness will have to wait until April 5 for his return back in the first team after suspension.

Harness faces a huge task in rediscovering his form from earlier this season having seen a dip in performances since the turn of the year with the attacking needing to hit the ground running if Portsmouth are to have a chance of a late push for the top six.

Despite a break of almost 4 and a half weeks, Harness can’t wait to get back into the team, telling The News: “Yeah (the break comes at a bad time). I think we’d prefer to play the games, really, because the schedule is going to be insane when we get back.

“I’ve had a break, obviously, but there are some lads who have played every game and I think it could be a good thing for some of us. We can come back re-energised and give the end of the season a good crack.”

Harness has scored 10 goals in 23 games in the league this season and will be hoping to fire Pompey into the playoffs.

The Verdict

There’s no doubt that Harness is a matchwinner and missing him over the last three games has been a blow.

But, Portsmouth have kept within arms reach of the top six and will need to keep winning games to put pressure on those in the top six. They can only do that if they have their best players ready and available.

The only potential issue with Harness is whether or not he’s match fit and ready to return as Danny Cowley will certainly need his talisman in form.

Sou