Kenny Jackett expects players to be thrown into matches soon after football's lockdown is over - with little chance of proper 'pre-season'.

As football awaits a date either for the resumption of this season or the start - perhaps delayed - of next term, the Pompey boss says they will need to be ready to hit the ground running.

He told www.portsmouthfc.co.uk: 'We’ve told all of the players that they can’t expect a lengthy pre-season period and there will likely be just a couple of weeks for training.

'It’s going to be different and they understand that because everyone wants to get the games going as soon as possible. Once we get the green light to start work again — whenever that is — the matches will quickly be following.

'But at least we’ve got over the few injuries that we did have. Everyone’s currently fit and able to get outside to train, while following the current guidelines.'

Jackett told the website he had been using his time away from normal activities to do plenty of scouting, preparation and planning for the restart. He said: 'I’ve been able to use scouting platforms to have an extensive look right across the leagues. That’s an excellent resource and you incorporate some of it into the information that’s gathered by our recruitment team.

'We’ve been able to really look in detail on the other League One sides and why, for example, some of them have been performing well. There’s plenty of interesting feedback and we’re also doing a lot of planning because there’s obviously more time to think about things.

'When we do come back — although we don’t know when that will be at the moment — we have to be ready. So we do need to pause for thought, reset and be ready to go again in order to capitalise on the good position we’re in.

'We’re also supporting all the players during this period — fitness is a part of it, but not the only thing to consider. I’ve been in contact with them, but so have Mark Catlin, Joe Gallen, (head physio) Bobby Bacic, (first team physio) Jack Hughes and (head of sports science) Jeff Lewis.'

Follow @Pompey_Fans

Click here to sign up for an account and reserve your username! You can then post on the Forum and add your comments to articles