Ross McCrorie and Ronan Curtis have earned praise from Kenny Jackett as Pompey's pre-season campaign steps up a gear.
The boss picked out the on-loan Rangers midfielder and the Irish winger after they contributed to Pompey's 1-0 win at Stevenage at the weekend.
Jackett believes McCrorie can add an extra dimension to the team - and said Curtis had looked lively since the players reported back for action.
The manager told the club website: 'It was a useful game and a step up from the previous week in terms of effort and application — the desire was there. We got into some good positions, although found it hard to move the ball and find that extra half a yard.
'Maybe we could have done that on a pitch that was cut properly, but you have to cope with that because it’s the same for both teams. It did affect the game, although overall I felt it was a cohesive performance and there are lot of new partnerships popping up all over the pitch.
'There are options and I felt that McCrorie brought a lot to our midfield — I can really see him bringing an extra dimension.
'We’re going to need to find a new centre-back pairing with Matt Clarke gone. It was Downing and Naylor on this occasion and I was pleased with them. Ronan got his goal and has looked lively throughout pre-season. He got a little knock towards the end, but almost completed the 90 minutes.
'We’ve been working hard since the day after the Sunderland game and I do feel we’ve arrived at the point where we’ve got a good squad. There are some decent players in our group who can compete over a 10-month period to hopefully have a successful season.'
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