Portsmouth must take Ipswich Town inspiration after tough Championship reveal: View | OneFootball

John Mousinho's side will be looking to create the Tractor Boys' remarkable campaign upon their return to the second tier

Portsmouth FC won’t have to look far to see how to make an instant impact on their return to the Championship, with Ipswich Town providing the perfect blueprint in the previous campaign.

The Tractor Boys went from strength to strength following their promotion from League One in the 22/23 campaign, with one of the best starts to a Championship season in history seeing them steal a march at the top of the table.

Kieran McKenna’s side finished the deal by securing a second successive promotion - and with it a return to the Premier League - and the south coast side will be looking to follow in their footsteps in the season to come, despite their tricky start to the following campaign.

The Fratton Park outfit will face off against two recent top flight sides in the first two weekends of the campaign, before clashes with two more sides eying up a playoff push before August ends.

Portsmouth FC will hold Ipswich Town hope after Championship opening fixtures revealed

If we jump back 12 months from now, Ipswich were preparing for their first season in the second tier for four years, having got themselves over the line to earn themselves a return to the familiar ground of the Championship.

The Suffolk side had the likes of Sunderland, Stoke City and Queens Park Rangers in their first three matches, and marched away from all three matches with maximum points, before going toe-to-toe with Leeds United at Portman Road.

They may not have won the pulsating 4-3 clash in East Anglia, but that performance against a side harbouring promotion hopes will have set them up with plenty of confidence for the campaign to come.

In fact, Town didn’t lose another league game until the end of November, which goes to show how unrelenting they were, as they managed to keep the momentum of the promotion-winning campaign rolling.

It is a trip to Elland Road that faces Mousinho and his men in their opening weekend in the upcoming campaign, with the 2008 FA Cup winners facing one of their toughest tests of the season at the first opportunity.

Portsmouth must prepare for Premier League promotion candidates upon Championship return

Daniel Farke’s side lost just two of their matches in front of their own fans in the previous campaign, which goes to show just what Pompey are up against, but with a fearlessness driven into them they will be more than willing to try and secure an opening day upset in Yorkshire.

The away end in LS11 will no doubt be packed to the rafters, as the travelling faithful look to inspire their side to success, before an all-Championship affair with Millwall in the EFL Cup days later.

Championship action resumes with the welcoming of Luton Town to Fratton Park for a first home fixture of the campaign, with Nathan Jones’ side looking to bounce back after Premier League relegation in May.

As introductions to their new surroundings go, they don’t get much trickier than two of the promotion favourites for the year ahead, and things don’t get much easier with an away trip to Middlesbrough coming the week after.

A north-east double-header sees Sunderland make a similar journey down to Hampshire before August comes to a close, leaving everyone on the banks of the Solent to breathe a sigh of relief.

But that respite won’t last for long, with home clashes with West Bromwich Albion and Sheffield United to come in September, as well as a trip to Turf Moor to face Burnley, with all three relegated Premier League sides on their schedule in the opening two months of the season.

On paper, it looks like the toughest of starts, but Mousinho will be relishing the challenge, with things starting to take shape regarding planning for the upcoming campaign.

Josh Murphy’s [pictured above] signing from Oxford United earlier this week was a massive statement of intent for Pompey ahead of the season opener, while tying down captain Marlon Pack to a new deal will be a welcome relief for all involved at the club.

The Championship can be an unrelenting league at times, and Portsmouth will find that out first hand as they get back to grips with the second tier, but if they come out of those first two months with some strong performances and points on the board, they will be ready to click into gear as the season progresses.

It's a task, but not an impossible one. With Ipswich very much ripping up that rule book last year.