We were well worth our win too. The game started pretty open but Charlton probably got closest to scoring a goal themselves in the first minute as a Darren Bent effort hit the post. It wasn't long before Pompey; unchanged from our win over Wigan last week dominated this match in the first half. Charlton struggled to get anything past our defence in open play whilst our midfield had tons of space to play an attractive, passing game whilst recieving help from the full backs and strikers. It was a very impressive team performance in the first half but we didn't have a goal to show for it as Kanu missed a sitter as well as another decent chance whilst Mendes, Davis and Sol Campbell all came close. Charlton could have nicked one from a set piece but the first forty-five minutes belonged to us.
Our dominance had me a bit worried at the break because it's often we play well against Charlton in the first half and still find ourselves losing so I feared it would be the same old story this time. It looked like my fears could come true as Dowie changed his side in the second half from a 4-3-3 into a 4-4-2 which posed us far more problems as we struggled to get hold of the ball. The Addicks created a host of oppurtunities and Rommedahl almost found the corner with a spectacular volley that I thought had hit the back of the net but it flew centimetres wide. Harry made an inspired substitution soon after as Benjani was taken off for Lua Lua.
Charlton have made a habit of getting smash 'n' grab results against us in the past so you can imagine my delight in seeing a speculative shot from Lua Lua outside the box go across goal and suddenly find the corner of the net after Scott Carson failed to push it away! As happy as I was with the blunder I wasn't getting too carried away as I expected Charlton to hit us with two late goals like they usually do but this solid defence would reduce the home side to taking long range pot-shots that never troubled David James. The final whistle blew and much relief was felt as well as joy because the Valley curse had finally been lifted after recording our fourth win of the season already. Not only that, but Pompey fans are still yet to hear the cheers of opposing fans as after 450 minutes of football James is yet to pick the ball out of his net!
So.... Once again we are top of the league after a great mix of quality and grit in our performance. David James was sound in goal bar a minor slip in the first half. The defence were excellent once again as on the whole they forced Charlton away from the goal and when they did get in the box, there were challenges to make sure the red shirts didn't get a decent shot in. The way Hasselbaink and Darren Bent were handled today was superb as neither could influence the game. Glen Johnson stood out and had his best game for the club yet as he tracked back and got forward down the right very well which makes him one of my "man of the match" contenders.
My other candidate for "man of the match" is Sean Davis. O'Neil, Mendes and Taylor all had good first halfs but Davis linked up very well when we were dominant in the first half but also got stuck in when it mattered in the second half. His duties on the field may go un-noticed but his contribution to the team has been very important. Either Davis or Johnson deserve "man of the match" but there wasn't anything between them on todays performance.
Benjani had a quiet game by his stanards and Kanu held the ball up well. When Lua Lua came on he gave the Charlton defence a different proposition to think about but he was hit and miss when he had the ball but that will be overshadowed by the fact he scored the winner, even if it was down to the goalkeeper making a huge mistake. After the game Lua Lua and Kanu stated in an interview that we were capable of finishing in the top four! I think they need to keep their feet on the ground but on the other hand it's great to see how confident the team is of getting results this season, and if we don't concede then we are never going to lose.
All in all, a great days work and Pompey fans will be dancing on the top of the league for a little while longer!