Five Pompey players will have to be careful as they are at risk of earning a one match ban through the EFL Championship’s disciplinary rules.
EFL suspension rules state that any player who accumulates five yellow cards before game-week 19 must serve a one-game ban. 10 yellows before match-week 32 will result in a two-match ban while 15 bookings before a team’s 38th match will mean a three-match suspension.
Pompey have so far played 16 games, and so there are two games to navigate through to avoid being hit with a ban. The recent postponed matches against Blackburn Rovers and Millwall mean Pompey have got to wait that little bit longer for the amnesty deadline. Most clubs in the league have already played 18 games, and so they won’t have to worry about any suspensions really now until late January or early February.
Out of the five Pompey players walking a tightrope, Jordan Williams and Callum Lang, are the closest to being suspended. Williams has been absent through injury recently anyway. The 25-year-old has missed the last two games against Preston North End and Swansea City due to a hamstring injury and would have likely missed the postponed games against Blackburn and Millwall.
Lang would be a massive blow as he’s Pompey’s top scorer this season with four goals. Soccerway says that Lang has four yellows this season, and so at least for now, should he score a goal, he’d be well advised not to take his shirt off to celebrate!
Marlon Pack, Andre Dozzell, and Harvey Blair must also be disciplined. Dozzell and Pack have played a lot of football this term. Club captain Pack picked up his most recent yellow card of the campaign in the 2-2 draw with Swansea City at the weekend.
The trio are all on three yellow cards, so they’ll need to avoid getting cautioned in their next two matches to avoid missing the game against Derby County. If of course if them or any other players pick up two yellow cards in the same game then they’ll receive an automatic one match ban, whilst a straight red card could lead to a longer suspension.
Pompey have back to back home games coming up, and so the Fratton Park faithful will be on hand to play their part to dispute any contentious refereeing decisions. Bristol City arrive this Saturday, and then they face Norwich City next Tuesday (December 10).
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