Connor Ogilvie faces four-to-six-week wait after knee surgery

Portsmouth defender Connor Ogilvie will undergo knee surgery today, with boss John Mousinho confirming the full-back faces a four-to-six-week recovery period. The 30-year-old is set to miss the start of the Championship season after the procedure, which Mousinho described as "not major" but still disruptive. Mousinho revealed Ogilvie did not join the squad for their training camp in the Republic of Ireland due to the impending operation. The Pompey boss told BBC Radio Solent: "Conor Ogilvie is actually under the knife today for knee surgery. It isn't major but should be about four to six weeks for him - we're less optimistic about the start of the season and are looking at a couple of weeks into the season."

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Ogilvie has been a key figure for Portsmouth since arriving in 2021, making 196 appearances and scoring 13 goals. His absence adds to a list of defensive injuries that forced multiple players to cover the full-back role last season. "It is a blow, we've had a number of players that have played in that position last year because of the injuries that we had," Mousinho said. Portsmouth have taken steps to mitigate the loss, with Mousinho highlighting Zak Swanson's recent contract signing as cover at left-back. The Blues also retain other options in Terry Devlin and Jordan Williams. "But we've got the players to cover it and thankfully with Swany (Zak Swanson) signing his contract that does give us cover at left-back," Mousinho added. Despite Ogilvie's likely unavailability for the campaign's opening fixtures, Mousinho stressed the squad remains well-staffed in defence. The club has already bolstered its ranks with two new signings, Odin Bailey and Eoin Kenny, while considering further additions in the transfer market to address depth concerns.