Portsmouth v Hull: play-off push meets safety bid | OneFootball

Portsmouth host Hull City in the Championship at Fratton Park on Saturday, 28 February, with the visitors chasing the promotion play-offs and the hosts looking to put more distance between themselves and the relegation places.

Hull edged the reverse fixture 3-2 in November and arrive fifth on 57 points. Portsmouth sit 19th with 39 points and have mixed form, following back to back away wins at Charlton and Millwall with defeats to Sheffield United and Wrexham.

Injuries could shape selections. Portsmouth list several absentees, including Joshua Murphy and John Swift, plus defenders Conor Shaughnessy and Josh Knight. Hull are without Ryan Giles and Semi Ajayi among others.

This could hinge on efficiency. Hull have scored 55 league goals at 1.7 per game with a 55.25% shooting accuracy and do most of their damage inside the box. Oliver McBurnie has 13 league goals and Joe Gelhardt 11, making the visitors a constant threat. Portsmouth have seven clean sheets and average 50% possession with 74.91% pass accuracy, so keeping the game compact and limiting box entries may be their route.

A home win would take Portsmouth to 42 points and could lift them further from the bottom three. Victory for Hull would move them to 60 points and strengthen their grip on the play-off places.