Late Winner Boosts Pompey's Survival Hopes

In a dramatic turn of events, Portsmouth secured a crucial victory with a late goal, boosting their chances of staying in the Championship and dealing a significant blow to Middlesbrough's fading automatic promotion hopes. The visitors struggled to find their footing, failing to land a shot on target until the final seconds, when Andre Dozzell's volley deflected off Conor Chaplin. This win puts an end to Portsmouth's eight-game winless streak under John Mousinho, keeping them a point and a place above the relegation zone. Middlesbrough, now winless in six games, remains three points behind second-placed Ipswich, who have two games in hand. Despite dominating the ball, Boro managed only four goals in their last six games, with two coming from their recent draw at Swansea. The home side started strong, with Alan Browne forcing an early save from Nicolas Schmid, but they struggled to create meaningful openings. Portsmouth's rare attack in the second half yielded their winning goal, as Terry Devlin found Colby Bishop, whose audacious flick went wide. Boro's half-time substitute Sontje Hansen nearly broke through but saw his shot cleared off the line by Dozzell. Portsmouth then capitalized on a corner, with Fry's headed clearance reaching Dozzell, whose strike deflected in off his teammate. Middlesbrough's Kim Hellberg expressed disappointment with the performance, describing the first half as 'terrible' and 'like watching paint dry.' He acknowledged the team's failure to capitalize on chances, despite dominating the game. Portsmouth's John Mousinho hailed the result as 'amazing' and crucial for their season, acknowledging the team's luck in securing the win against a strong Middlesbrough side.