Kenny Jackett is set to sell or send on loan four members of his squad - and more will need to follow if he brings in any more new faces.

The :Pompey boss has 28 first-team squad members at his disposal and says his ideal number is 24. That means the likes of Gary Roberts and Michael Smith could be on their way out of Fratton soon.

But Jackett stopped short of confirming that duo are not part of his plans.

The manager told The News: ‘In an ideal world I want two players for every position to make 22. Then I’d like a third goalkeeper and a spare forward, if you like, because that position is so important. So you’re looking at a squad of 24.

‘Out of those 24, if a lot can be homegrown and come through your youth policy, then great. That’s what you’re aiming for. If it was a squad of 24 who’d all been brought in there’d be too many rumblings and that can affect team spirit. But if they are young players constantly improving and have the hunger to be there, that’s the ideal for any club — and the ideal for me.’

Jackett spoke about Roberts and Smith but said only that they were two who were not part of the first team plans or 'shape' at the moment.

He told The News: 'Gary and Michael are fully fit but weren’t selected.... it’s going to be very difficult to distribute those games around and give everyone opportunities. Gary trained with the first team every day last week except Friday.

'That was when we were working on team shape and organisation for the game. He wasn’t involved in the game on Saturday, so he wasn’t involved. So he was with the first team up until Friday and then training separately as we prepared for Bournemouth.

‘There are too many players for the front four positions. At the moment, though, Gary and Michael are the ones missing out.'

Pompey play their final friendly, at Crawley, on Saturday.

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