Pompey are mourning the death of Joe Laidlaw, who has passed away at the age of 71.
The former Blues midfielder scored 23 goals in 75 appearances for the club between the summer of 1979 and December 1980.
After arriving from Doncaster for a fee of £15,000, he skippered the side to Division Four promotion during the 1979/80 campaign.
He missed the opening game through suspension, but was otherwise ever-present and 17 goals saw him finish as joint leading marksman with Colin Garwood.
Former team-mate Alan Knight said: "Joe was my first captain after I got into the first team and he looked after me.
"He was a great player and those who were lucky enough to see him play will tell you what a fantastically skilful midfielder he was with outstanding vision."
Arguably Laidlaw’s finest display came in a 3-1 victory at Huddersfield, where he netted twice in a top-of-the-table clash.
He remained at Fratton Park for the first half of the following campaign before following team-mate Derek Showers to Hereford.
Laidlaw also turned out for Middlesbrough, Carlisle, Mansfield and Walterlooville, while he managed Petersfield, Fareham, Chichester and Selsey.
Joe’s grandson Harvey currently plays for Pompey’s academy side, while granddaughter Grace is a member of the women’s development squad.
The thoughts of everyone at Portsmouth Football Club are with all his family and friends at this sad time.
His contribution to Pompey will be recognised with a minute’s applause ahead of Saturday’s match against AFC Wimbledon.