Portsmouth boss John Mousinho has claimed one of his midfielders is now “in the mix” to feature against Wycombe Wanderers.
The Blues travel to Adams Park looking to maintain their nine-point lead at the top of League One.
Mousinho has finally received positive news on the injury front, with Tino Anjorin coming back into the fray after his four-month layoff.
The Pompey boss has also highlighted another player he believes is primed to make his first start for the club.
‘Fantastic’ midfielder fit to make first Portsmouth start
In his pre-match press conference, Mousinho claimed that Lee Evans is finally up to speed after signing for the club on a deal to the end of the 2023/24 season.
“For players like Lee Evans, it’s another week on the training pitch,” Mousinho told Portsmouth’s social media channels.
“We’ve been building his fitness up. We didn’t feel it was quite right for him to start again, but now he’s well in the mix [to start].”
Elsewhere, the 37-year-old has ruled Callum Lang out of the trip to High Wycombe. The former Wigan Athletic forward sustained an injury during the 0-0 draw with Blackpool and isn’t expected to feature until next week’s clash against Shrewsbury at the earliest.
Should Lee Evans start against Wycombe on Friday?
Evans’ signing does give Stanley Aborah vibes. The 36-year-old was signed toward the back end of the League Two title-winning season and provided some iconic moments for the Fratton Faithful.
Evans, who was lauded as “fantastic” by former boss Kieran McKenna, will have to displace Owen Moxon to break into Mousinho’s plans.
Moxon has grown into Fratton Park life after his January move from Carlisle, but the 26-year-old has still had one or two shaky moments.
Against an in-form Wycombe side, perhaps starting a more experienced head could be the route to go down. Elsewhere, Joe Rafferty could return to the starting XI after recovering from an illness that kept him out of the Peterborough United victory.
Kusini Yengi could also be rested with the Aussie covering over 10,000 miles as he returns from Australia international duty.