Burton's Banter returns - and so does Grant

Managers always talk about waiting until 12 games before looking at the table.

Well, this blogger has waited until eight games in before locating his keyboard.

The events at Pompey have, as usual, been nothing short of sensational but we'll come to that later.

First I'd like to re-introduce you to this blog, which started up last season and will now pick up the reins again in the 2009/10 season.

My name is James Burton. I'm deputy sports editor at The News, Portsmouth, and this is a blog about Pompey.

Hopefully, it will add to our already-comprehensive interactive web coverage of the club, which as well as featuring all the latest stories, now boasts established webchats and podcasts.

As on our website, portsmouth.co.uk, feel free to leave your comments at the bottom and the best ones will be picked out and published in our daily newspaper.

Formalities over, let's crack on.

With Sulaiman Al Fahim elbowed out of control and Ali Al Faraj moving in as the main owner of the club, a 2pm press conference on Wednesday promised to be nothing more than confirmation of that takeover.

But there was an unexpected add-on - the return of Avram Grant, or as some harsher members of our sports desk call him, the Honey Monster.

Grant has been welcomed back with open arms by fans and David James - but I'm sceptical.

After all, what does Grant bring to the party? Is he a top coach like Brian Kidd? Can he attract the best players to Fratton Park? Does he bring tactical nous to the table?

I'm not convinced about any of these. He was underused during his last spell at Pompey.
And I'm not convinced Grant did anything to enhance his reputation at Chelsea, where he simply prolonged Jose Mourinho's footballing mantra for another year.

The worry is the Israeli will be moved into the hot seat if the axe falls on Paul Hart - a pretty uninspiring prospect in my book.

It's worth pointing out, too, that Hart can't be pleased with Grant's arrival. Just as he appears to be moulding a team in his image, winning the fans over in the process, he gets undermined by an appointment which does not appear to be his choice.

Of course, it may end up being a match made in heaven.

Let's hope everyone looks back on Grant's return as a positive moment in Pompey's history.

I fear it may be a rocky ride.