Portsmouth set for Marlon Pack breakthrough | OneFootball

Portsmouth are close to confirming that Marlon Pack has signed a contract extension to remain at Fratton Park for next season, per The News.

The 33-year-old signed a two-year contract with Pompey in June 2022, and was scheduled to become a free agent this summer.

Portsmouth confirmed via their retained list that they'd offered a new contract to the former Cardiff City and Bristol City midfielder, as the club have waited anxiously over the past few weeks for Pack to make his decision.

Now it appears that the club captain is set to stay at Fratton Park, ahead of Portsmouth's long-awaited return to Championship football next season.

Pack isn't packing his bags

According to a report in The News, Portsmouth are set to announce that Pack will remain a Pompey player next season, as the League One Team of The Season inclusion prepares to commit his future to the club.

They understand that the Blues have agreed terms with Pack, on a deal that will see him play second tier football once again in his career, but this time for his hometown club.

The report reveals that Pack had taken some time away to consider his options, which included spending time celebrating the club's League One title win in Las Vegas with his teammates.

But now the veteran campaigner is ready to put pen to paper, on what the report states will likely be a 12-month extension.

The News go on to suggest that there is a belief within the football club that Pack could be a natural fit to move into a football operations role within the club, whenever he chooses to hang up the boots for good.

Pack extension a huge boost to Pompey's survival chances

In any year that a football club achieves promotion up the leagues, continuity and retaining the service of the players who've gotten you there is vital.

You only need to look at the playing squads of Luton Town, Ipswich Town and further back to the likes of Sheffield United as examples of how important that is. All of those respective squads that earned Premier League promotion were still largely made up of the same players who'd won promotion to the Championship.

So for Portsmouth, retaining the services of Pack was one of the best pieces of business the club could've hoped to do this summer, as the midfielder knows exactly what the second tier is all about, having made 269 appearances in it - per Transfermarkt.

Despite being 33, age is merely a number so long as you're still performing to a high level, and that is precisely what Pack has been doing.

Three goals and nine assists in 38 League One matches last year ensured that the Englishman would play a vital role in aiding his hometown side would be playing Championship football for the first time since 2012 next season.

Now Portsmouth fans can rest easy, and look forward to more additions coming their way this summer, as manager John Mousinho signs up Pompey's 2023/24 Player of the Season, and by doing so has handed his side a major boost in their bid for Championship survival next season.