Harry's persistance with Papa Bouba Diop playing on the right side is grating Pompey fans as they're wondering why he refuses to start John Utaka. Has he really lost faith in him so much that he is just going to let him warm the bench?
Utaka was our (reported) record buy at £7 million - £8.1 million (depending on what reports you believe) until Crouch arrived last month. It seems that Harry is willing to keep such an expensive player on the bench and play an out-and-out central midfielder in a position he "hates playing in" but what is the logic in that?
Yes, the Nigerian was very inconsistent last season but showed what he was capable of at the beginning of the campaign by scoring two goals in three games and giving defences nightmares with his pace.
It would be unfair to label him as a flop as he chipped in with his fair share of goals and provided the cross for Kanu to tap in the FA Cup winning goal. He is the quickest player in our squad and on his day he can terrorize the slower defenders in this league, just ask Nicky Shorey.
I think he could be a hit now he has settled in, after all it took a year for Niko Kranjcar to make the left midfield place his own so why isn't Harry giving Utaka the chance to make the right wing his?
Perhaps Harry is planning on selling him to raise funds to buy another player? Maybe I am being paranoid and he does plan to use Utaka when we are playing lesser opposition so he doesn't have to track back. Until we know the answer we will have to put up with Diop on the right.
So what are the alternatives to playing the big Senegalese midfielder on the right?
Glen Little isn't a long term solution considering his age and injuries last season. He will start some games and will get the crosses in but I can't see him starting many games and he doesn't offer the pace down the wings that Harry loves.
Jerome Thomas offers that pace but from what Charlton fans say he is just as inconsistent as Utaka (if not more so) and can't cross a ball. I expect Redknapp is planning to play him as a left winger as an alternative to Kranjcar anyway.
There have been reports that Harry is still after Shaun Wright-Phillips and wants to loan him from Chelsea. I'm not sure about the rules when it comes to loans and borrowing two players from the same club and I'm not sure if the FA understand their own loan system either!
Whatever the plan to solve our right wing problem is, I hope it isn't to play Diop there the entire season!