The signing of Matt Clarke has been praised by Pompey skipper Michael Doyle.

He believes the recruitment of the Ipswich youngster goes a long way to compensating for the loss of Adam Webster, who has gone in the opposite direction.

Doyle told The News: ‘I thought Matty was excellent last season, he has so much potential, I was absolutely delighted when we got him permanently. His performances on the field spoke for themselves, he was improving every week.

‘But looking at the other side, he is one of the first in every day from Monday to Friday, in the gym every day and out there working on his game. He is just a great professional. I suppose in a sense he is only a kid, but he is a man. He can be a massive player for Portsmouth for years to come.

‘I remember seeing him for the first time in the friendly against Coventry. I thought to myself “Who is this fella, I haven’t seen him before”. He is only a kid, yet looks like he’s about 28.

‘Last year was a learning curve for Matty, but it didn’t even feel like that when you played with him, he never really got caught out. He just came in and it was like he had played 300 to 400 league games.'

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