Portsmouth boss sends early warning to Leeds United ahead of 2024/25 Championship opener

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Leeds United kick off their 2024/25 Championship campaign at home to Pompey.

Portsmouth manager John Mousinho insists his side will play without fear upon returning to the Championship with their trip to Leeds United exactly one month away.

Leeds will welcome Portsmouth to Elland Road on Saturday, August 10, in what will be the 2024/25 season’s opening weekend. Last season’s League One title-winners have been dealt a tough opening hand when it comes to the fixture list, with Daniel Farke’s Whites and all three relegated Premier League teams to face before the end of September.

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But Ipswich Town were proof that a well-coached and well-recruited team can come into the Championship and go head-to-head with the league’s best, eventually finishing second and achieving consecutive promotions without compromising on their style. Pompey are under no illusions that survival will be a big ask next season but Mousinho insists he will ‘relish’ the challenge of facing second-tier opposition for the first time in 12 years.

"The way we will approach it is to attack every game,” Mousinho said. “I want us to relish it, these are brilliant games and are massive for us but we’re not going to be daunted by it. We’re going to make sure we take the chance to prove ourselves at this level. 

"The standard will go up. I don’t think you get away with mistakes at this level, you have to be at the top of your game for every minute. But this is where we want to be, we don’t want to be in a league where you can get away with little things. It’ll be a difficult step up but one we’re really looking forward to."

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Portsmouth will need to get a lot right this summer if they are to survive in the Championship but have already been busy in the market, welcoming four senior arrivals through the door at Fratton Park. Winger Sam Silvera has joined on loan from Middlesbrough while the free transfer of defender Jordan Williams from Barnsley is seen as a coup.

Leeds manager Daniel Farke will be aware of one familiar face joining Portsmouth this summer, with former Norwich City winger Josh Murphy signing as a free agent after leaving fellow promoted side Oxford United. Experienced goalkeeper Jordan Archer has also joined after being released by Queens Park Rangers.

“We’re not going to rush anything," Mousinho added of his side’s transfer business. "We could have taken 10 players a month ago, but that’s now what we want to do. We want to make sure we get the right players in and when you do that sometimes you have to be patient. You have to wait for things to develop with clubs, players and agents - sometimes it just takes a bit of time.

"I just feel really confident that we’re working in the right direction and I’m really confident we’ve got everything in the right place and we’re very diligent with the way we do things. I’m very happy with the stage that we’re at."

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