Pompey fans will be hoping that their festive cheer continues from Christmas Day as Paul Cook's men look to win at Rodney Parade on Boxing Day.
Team News
Paul Cook will make changes to his side as the busy festive period begins with Gary Roberts the most likely to be dropped. Kal Naismith would be the favourite to replace him although there's a possibility that either Noel Hunt or Conor Chaplin could partner Michael Smith up front instead.
Newport midfielder Sean Rigg is available again after serving a three-match-ban but Jamie Turley, Joss Labadie and Lenell John-Lewis are all sidelined with knee injuries. Dan Butler may feature against his former club.
The Match
Providing the match goes ahead tomorrow (weather permitting), there can be absolutely no excuses for not picking up three points on Boxing Day. Newport are four points adrift at the bottom of the League Two table and despite Pompey's tribulations at Fratton Park, they haven't been beaten on the road for nearly three months.
It seems like Roberts is finally going to be dropped but the question will be whether to stick with the same 4-2-3-1 formation which has yielded success away from home or go with a bolder approach and play two strikers.
The most likely option would be a direct swap for Roberts with Naismith who will be able to provide some quality crosses into the box that Smith could make use of. Given the state of Newport's pitch, a more direct style of play would probably be more effective.
You know what you're getting from a Graham Westley team. They'll be rough and employ gamesmanship at every opportunity. It could make for a frustrating afternoon but Newport's squad lacks any real quality and they're struggling to score, so logic would state that Pompey shouldn't have too much trouble in beating the bottom team in the league.
Still, football isn't logical and the Hartlepool result last weekend will have reminded every Portsmouth supporter that these games cannot be taken for granted. However, a failure to win this match will see the pressure really mount on Cook ahead of the new year.
Predicted Starting Line-Ups
Newport
GK: Joe DAY
RB: Jazzi BARNUM-BOBB
CB: Darren JONES
CB: Scot BENNETT
LB: Dan BUTLER
RM: Sean RIGG
CM: Ben TOZER
CM: Josh SHEEHAN
LM: Jennison MYRIE-WILLIAMS
CF: Marlon JACKSON
CF: Rhys HEALEY
Pompey
GK: David FORDE
RB: Gareth EVANS
CB: Christian BURGESS
CB: Matt CLARKE
LB: Enda STEVENS
DM: Michael DOYLE
DM: Danny ROSE
RM: Kal NAISMITH
AM: Carl BAKER
LM: Kyle BENNETT
CF: Michael SMITH
Last Time: Newport County 0 Portsmouth 1 (League Two - 17/10/2015)
A single Matt Tubbs strike was enough to seal the win for Pompey on this occasion.
My Prediction
Newport are poor and Pompey have been playing well when not in front of a huge crowd of their own supporters. This will be tough but Paul Cook's men should have enough to sneak it.
Newport County 0 Portsmouth 1