Portsmouth v West Bromwich Albion: survival fight as 20th meets 21st | OneFootball

Portsmouth host West Bromwich Albion in the Championship on Saturday, 31 January 2026 at Fratton Park, with both sides hovering above the relegation places and separated by two points in 20th and 21st.

West Bromwich Albion are unbeaten in the last three meetings, winning 3-0 in Portsmouth in 2024 and 5-1 at home in 2025, before a 1-1 draw in August.

John Mousinho's side have steadied with five points from their last three league games, drawing with Southampton and Watford after a win at Sheffield Wednesday. Eric Ramsay's team lost four straight in the league, including a 5-0 home defeat to Norwich City, before drawing at Derby.

Portsmouth have a lengthy injury list including Joshua Murphy, Regan Poole, Conor Shaughnessy and Josh Knight. West Bromwich Albion are without Krystian Bielik, Karlan Ahearne-Grant and Tammer Bany.

Albion have averaged 51% possession with 82.03% pass accuracy but have conceded 44 league goals, so control may not guarantee stability. Aune Heggebo has eight league goals and Michael Johnston leads the Championship with nine assists. Portsmouth average 0.9 goals per game yet have six clean sheets. Their headed goals and crossing accuracy suggest set pieces and aerial routes could be key.

A home win would move Portsmouth to 33 points and above West Bromwich Albion. An away victory would take Albion to 35 points and could create a small cushion to the bottom three. A draw would keep both firmly in the survival mix.