Southampton fans will be equal levels of anxious and excited at the moment about Championship action returning after the international break.
There is still no conclusion in sight regarding the Tonda Eckert Spygate saga, with an individual punishment still not public knowledge yet, after the German attended a FA hearing towards the end of September.
Will he be present on the sidelines for such a hotly contested showdown?
You would hope that a verdict would finally be out in the open in the days leading up to such a important clash at St. Mary's...
Away from the never-ending anxiety involving Eckert, however, there will always be a natural buzz when Portsmouth come to town, as they are Southampton's sworn South Coast enemy, with an expectation that a win will be forthcoming, with how free-flowing and confident the Saints have looked on their own patch so far this season.
The German could have a personnel issue up top to contend with, though, with Cyle Larin not present during Canada's last international runout, due to a slight injury knock.
Could Larin be injured for Pompey?
Jesse Marsch has revealed that Larin has suffered with a back injury while in the Canada camp.
He was completely absent for Marsch and Co.'s 2-0 win over Peru subsequently, with lots of Saints eyes on the lineup for Canada's last match of the break against the USA, to see if Larin features or not.
It would be a big kick in the teeth not to have one of the Championship's most feared strikers available for such a critical contest, against one of your biggest rivals, as Larin would thrive in that environment, having a red-hot eight goals in all competitions this season.
The worry will be, if one of the Saints' main focal points in attack is unavaliable, that Pompey won't really fear their arch nemesis, and could pull off a shock result on their travels.
Eckert will be scrambling in his head to work out who he should go with for the showdown with John Mousinho's visitors if the Brampton Bagsman is in the treatment room momentarily, with this unproven gem leading the line the likeliest fix.
This unproven gem could be chucked into the side
The South Coast giants aren't blessed with plentiful striker options, away from Larin powering home the goals for fun.
Cameron Archer is no longer situated at St. Mary's, and it could be a slight regret that he isn't available in the reserves, as he's bagged three goals already this season out on loan with Auxerre.
Away from Archer, Eckert will likely have to run with Divin Mubama, if the Canadian is ruled out of the contest this approaching Sunday, and it will be a gamble expecting the Manchester City loanee to be up for such a fiercely competitive match.
Indeed, he has struggled a little with the physical nature of the Championship since leaving the Etihad behind, with only two of his ten duels won away at Lincoln City last month.
He will need to be far more imposing against Pompey to leave his mark on the combative affair, but he will be believe he can score a goal in a flash, if an opportunity came his way.
He has only averaged 17 minutes of Championship action this season, yet he has a goal and an assist next to his name.
Perfectly timed run, perfectly placed finish 😏 pic.twitter.com/vxsbWmENJ1
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) August 23, 2026
This one-off strike against Stoke City in August saw Mubama finish off a chance from just 11 minutes of action, so he will be praying he can disorient the away side's defence with a split second moment of potency, if he is selected as Eckert's main leading man up top.
After all, with a player of Finn Azaz's quality feeding you chances, Mubama should be licking his lips at the prospect of a start.
Ideally, Larin would be starting.
But if he still looks in discomfort regarding a back injury, the raw number 28 might have to be handed the first team reins, in a risky starting XI move that hopefully works in favour of the hosts, if they have to roll the dice.
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