The Blues suffer defeat in their first home league match of the season despite a second half fightback at Fratton Park.
It was two first-half goals from Norwich that prevented Pompey kickstarting their Championship home account.
Two set pieces from the Canaries caused chaos from Pompey, with Harry Darling heading home an early free-kick, followed by Josh Sargent, who put away a goal-line scramble from a corner.
John Mousinho made one change to the side that beat Oxford one-nil at the Kassam Stadium on the opening day last weekend, with the supposedly injured Josh Murphy coming in for Florian Bianchini to start against the club where the Blues number 23 started his career at with his brother Jacob a decade ago.
Norwich took the lead inside the opening six minutes through Harry Darling, when the Canaries defender leaped up to head home Marcelino Nunez’s quick free kick, after ex-Ipswich midfielder Andre Dozzell gave away a foul inside the Pompey half.
Norwich almost added a second when Josh Sargent found himself one-on-one with Nicholas Schmid when the Austrian shot stopper gave the ball away in the path of the United States International, who picked up the ball from open play, but Schmid was there to deny a second with his left leg.
Liam Manning’s side then got their second, and it was Sargent who got on the goal, when the number nine was able to tap home a goal-line scramble from a Yellow's corner to make it two-nil just 15 minutes gone.
Just before the half-hour mark, Pompey had their best chance yet to creep back in this tie, when Callum Lang played a square ball through to Colby Bishop, but the Blues number 9 was not given a chance to fire a shot a goal, due to Nunez’s quick instinct to stop the attempt.
City defender Jose Cordoba received a yellow card when the Panama international left a foot in on Callum Lang, with many around Fratton Park calling for referee Stephen Martin to pull out a straight red card.
Nunez almost made it three when the Chilean international smashed a shot at Schmid following Papa Diallo’s lay off, but the midfielder’s effort narrowly breezed past the top right-hand corner ahead of the two additional minutes of added time.
HALF-TIME: Portsmouth 0-2 Norwich
Liam Manning made one change at half-time with Oscar Schwartau coming on for Danish attacker Emiliano Marcondes, who went down in the first half.
Norwich almost started the second 45 with a third goal of the afternoon; however, Ante Crnac’s effort at goal went wide of Schmid’s net in front of the Milton End.
After going down in the first half holding his leg, Marcelino Nunez’ afternoon was eventually ended when the Chile number 26 went down holding his leg again. He was then replaced by Manchester City academy graduate Jacob Wright just a minute into the second half.
The Pompey faithful from all 4 sides of Fratton Park got riled up for a free-kick outside the edge of the 18-yard-box, which specialist John Swift took, but the Blues number eight’s effort was fired straight at the Norwich wall.
Callum Lang’s afternoon was up 55 minutes gone when the Pompey number 49 went down; he had to be replaced by French attacker Florian Bianchini.
Manning’s side then came close again to adding a third, this time via Cordoba, whose flicked attempt on goal from Darling’s header was blocked away by Regan Poole from a Canaries free kick.
Adrian Segecic gave Pompey a small glimmer of hope when his long-ranged effort at goal was tipped over the bar by Vladan Kovacevic, which led to a corner that went out of play with a Blue shirt unable to connect from Murphy’s set piece.
There was then another hair’s breadth away moment from John Mousinho’s side, this time Murphy’s low cross almost found Bishop, whose toe-poke was palmed away by Kovacevic, falling to Segecic, but the Australian number 10’s rebounded effort was cleared out of harm's way.
Josh Murphy came off with twenty minutes to go as a precaution; he was one of two changes, as well as Jordan Williams, with the duo being replaced by Zak Swanson and Thomas Waddingham, who went in behind Bishop, pushing Segecic out wide to the right flank.
Pompey kept piling on the pressure this time through ex-Tractor-boy Andre Dozzell, but the midfielder's strike went just over the bar.
With just over ten minutes left on the clock, Pompey were awarded a penalty when Kellen Fisher left a high foot on Bianchini, with Stephen Martin having no choice but to point to the spot.
Unfortunately for Pompey, Colby Bishop aimed the ball into the bottom right corner, which was exactly where Bosnia international Kovacevic went with both gloves on the ball.
However, all hope was not lost from the Fratton faithful, and that was thanks to Adrian Segecic, whose effort form outside the area zoomed into the bottom right-hand corner to make it two-one to score his second Blues goal of the season, with just over five minutes of normal time left to play.
There was an additional TEN minutes of injury time added on by fourth official Ben Atkinson, with Portsmouth left desperate for a late equaliser in their first Championship home game of the season.
Portsmouth were denied a spot kick very late on when Wright left a foot in on Connor Ogilvie was chopped down the Norwich number 16, but the referee gave the advantage to Norwich.
John Swift came millimetres away from securing that much-needed equaliser, but the number eight’s volleyed effort at goal flew straight at the crossbar, bouncing back in play too soon for a Blue shirt to get a touch of the ball.
FULL-TIME: Portsmouth 1-2 Norwich
Next up: It’s back on the road for John Mousinho’s side as the Blues make the 304-mile round trip to the Hawthorns to face Ryan Mason’s West Bromwich Albion next bank holiday weekend in a 3 pm kick-off.
A place and a team that is known as a horror show to many, with Pompey leaving the Midlands last time out with a 6-1 defeat, and in the reverse fixture in September 2024, were beaten 3-0 at Fratton Park, in a game where John Swift started for the visitors.
Can Pompey get back to winning ways next weekend? It will be a firm task for the Blues who visit the Hawthorns to face a West Brom side who beat them 5-1 last time out back in January.
Portsmouth: 1. Schmid (GK), 2. Williams (22. Swanson), 5. Poole, 6. Shaughnessy, 3. Ogilvie, 8. Swift, 21. Dozzell, 49. Lang (11. Bianchini), 10. Segecic, 23. Murphy (20. Waddingham), 9. Bishop (C) (Formation: 4-2-3-1)
Unused subs: 30. Killip (GK), 14. Matthews, 16. Le Roux, 17. Bowat, 18. Kosznovszky, 24. Devlin, 47. Min-hyeok
Goals: Segecic 84’
Bookings: Poole 58’
Head Coach: John Mousinho
Norwich City: 1. Kovacevic (GK), 3. Stacey (35. Fisher), 6. Darling, 5. Medic, 33. Cordoba, 19. Diallo (27. Schlupp), 22. Topic, 26. Nunez (16. Wright), 11. Marcondes (29. Schwartau), 17. Cranac, 9. Sargent (C) (30. Kvistgaarden) (Formation: 3-4-2-1)
Unused subs: 32. Grimshaw (GK), 8. Gibbs, 10. Jurasek, 24. Makama
Goals: Darling 6’, Sargent 14’
Bookings: Topic 25’, Cordoba 37’
Head Coach: Liam Manning
Venue: Fratton Park
Referee: Stephen Martin
Attendance: 20,382 (Including 1,911 Norwich fans)
Download the Pompey Live: Extra-Time podcast to catch the post-match thoughts of Jake Smith and David Howes, who aired their reflections whilst en route to the John Jenkins Stadium to make it in time for kick-off in the FA Cup Preliminary Qualifying fixture involving Moneyfields and AFC Portchester.
You can hear even more reaction to the game on Monday (August 18th) night's instalment of The Football Hour on Express FM with Jake Smith, Jay Clements and Joe Wood on air from between 6-7pm.
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