Portsmouth made it six wins in seven League One matches after running away 4-1 winners over Reading on Saturday.
However, it wasn’t all plain sailing at Fratton Park.
The visitor’s energetic start looked likely to yield the opening goal – an outcome Pompey couldn’t have had too many complaints about.
Right up until Paddy Lane’s 36-minute strike, the Blues had been on the back foot. However, a ruthless edge has developed in recent weeks. A piece of Abu Kamara magic or an efficient finish from Lane or Callum Lang, and the game is out of site for most opposition teams.
In attack, Pompey look an entirely different proposition. They are extremely clinical, something that’s rarely said at PO4.
With recent injury issues impacting John Mousinho’s squad, the centre of midfield has developed as a problem area.
Joe Morrell, Tom Lowery, Alex Robertson and Ben Stevenson are all out. As are Terry Devlin and Tino Anjorin.
Marlon Pack has stepped up in recent weeks and has been joined by January signing Owen Moxon.
Moxon, 26, is slowly finding his feet at Fratton Park and has been praised by Mousinho.
“I thought after that initial period where not just Owen, but quite a few of the lads couldn’t get to grip with the game, he settled into it,” Mousinho told The Portsmouth News.
“He grew into the game and he was much, much more effective in the second half.
“You could see a couple of bits of play settled him down, and you could start to see his quality, so I was really pleased for Owen.
“I thought as the game went on he was excellent, and to get 90 minutes into his is something we’re really, really pleased with.”
Portsmouth injury boost on the horizon
The Pompey boss needs one or two players to return from injury in the coming weeks.
Anjorin is set to complete the final stages of his rehab at Chelsea before returning to training in the next couple of weeks (Portsmouth News).
Summer signing Ben Stevenson is over four weeks away from returning to action after sustaining an injury at the start of January.
For now, Pompey will have to maintain their promotion push with Pack and Moxon at the heart of their midfield. Myles Peart-Harris can operate in a deep-lying role if required, although Mousinho will probably be inclined to keep the Brentford loanee in a more advanced position.