Grant's task is his defining test

Having been a critic of Avram Grant's arrival - in the previous blog and in The News Pompey Talk podcast - it's time to assess the Israeli's initial impact as full-time manager.

One thing's clear - he has his own ideas.

Placing Prince Boateng and Tommy Smith out wide in a 4-5-1-style formation against Burnley showed he understood the need for the team to have more width.

You can't argue with the sentiment, although the tactical switch failed.

The first-half display - as one of our chosen fans perfectly described - was a mess.

And it was only when Grant switched to 4-4-2 and, more crucially, brought the guile of Kanu on that Pompey began to get in behind the Clarets.

As many have pointed out, though, at least he was prepared to make the change.

It already seems his players will have to be more flexible with formations and tactics than they needed to be under Paul Hart.

That's fine - as long as Grant doesn't over complicate things. The first-half confusion on Saturday should serve as a warning that this is not the time or place to throw too many square pegs in round holes.

As for the man himself, Grant has exuded the calm befitting a man who took Chelsea to the Champions League final.

My major concern remains that at Stamford Bridge he steered a ship with an A-list crew, who were so well drilled under Jose Mourinho the team looked like it almost ran itself.

Grant fans will say that's grossly unfair - and they have a case.

But the Pompey ship has a crew of odd-job men and solid pros - stardust is in short supply.

It's up to Grant to make Pompey's whole greater than the sum of its parts and escape relegation.

It's a tough task but it's where he will earn his real managerial spurs.

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.

Pompey manager hunt: the lowdown

In the previous Burton's Banter I suggested Tony Adams' heartfelt interview to The News had bought him more time with fans.

The former Gunners captain admitted the abuse he received after the defeat to Fulham had hurt. He was a wounded animal.

But while fans condemned their own and got behind their leader, the episode brought little sympathy from Pompey owner Sacha Gaydamak.

On Sunday night, The News broke the story of Adams' sacking. The timing was a surprise, the decision was not.

Now, of course, attention turns to his replacement.

The club have refused to speak (apart from approved in-house interviews) and insist they haven't much to say until a new man is appointed.

Let's hope a plan was put in place before they made the decision to axe Adams, because apart from Harry Redknapp the success rate of recent appointments has been dire.

The next one is the most important for decades. Either Pompey cement their place as a Premier League club and enjoy the riches this brings or they slip into the relative obscurity that is the Championship dogfight.

With that in mind here's my take on the management names which have been linked so far by media and the fans.

Sven-Goran Eriksson
Clearly now the preferred choice. However, the former manager has a big - and well-paid - job as Mexico boss to deal with. Has pledged his future to them Mexico but, in the same breath, said 'anything is possible'.
Wouldn't have the same budget that he did at Man City and would have to wheel and deal. Is that his forte?
One thing is for sure, he would command instant respect from the senior players as someone who has been there and done it with England, Lazio, Benfica and Sampdoria.
Is Brian Kidd's arrival - he worked with him at England - a sign of Sven's influence.
A good, but expensive, choice.

Avram Grant
No-one really knows what he did at Pompey as technical director. One suspects not a lot. Harry Redknapp tolerated him before Grant got his chance at Chelsea.
Took a team Jose Mourinho built to the Champions League final and came within a whisker of winning it. Mourinho has more charisma in his little toe than Grant, but the Israeli's achievement now compares favourably to his successor Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Is organised and clearly knows his football, but could he inspire Pompey? Senior players at Fratton Park, like me, have reservations. Not the answer.

Alan Curbishley
Compensation battle with West Ham would stop him being instantly available, which makes him slightly irrelevant in an immediate relegation battle.
Longer term he could be someone worth hanging on for. Proven record of establishing Premier League teams, albeit not beyond midtable, at Charlton and the Hammers.
Knows the market, could work within a tight budget and is someone who would communicate well with the fans. A solid choice.

Slaven Bilic
Represents an exciting option. An up-and-coming boss with international experience and with the personality to deal with Premier League prima-donnas.
Plays in a rock band and has a law degree, he definitely bring some colour to Fratton Park. Insists he will not leave Croatia until the end of the World Cup qualifying campaign so it would have to be some offer to tempt him. On the flip side he is relatively poorly paid as national team boss and a job in England would represent a huge pay rise.
Would be a gamble, but one that could spectacularly pay off.

Glen Hoddle
One word: Southampton. Good pedigree with England and Spurs but would not be welcome at Fratton Park.

Graeme Souness
One word: Southampton. Less impressive pedigree with Newcastle and Liverpool, and would not be welcome at Fratton Park.

Paul Hart
Pure stop-gap. As doomed spells in charge of Barnsley and Rushden proved, his main strength is working with youngsters. Good personality, though, and an ideal man to hold the fort while Pompey sort themselves out.

Roy Keane
Brian Kidd's appointment to assist Paul Hart has raised the prospect of Roy Keane at Fratton Park. The duo know each from their Manchester United days and Kidd was rumoured to be heading to the Stadium of Light as his number two at one point.
Oh... and there have been rumours of Keane being spotted at Fratton Park. Mind you, Sven has also been spotted, despite being in a different continent!

Time to wait and see...