Hunger and quality are the magic ingredients for Kenny Jackett.
And he knows that Pompey will need to produce both if they are to return to winning ways against Walsall this weekend.
Since beating Rochdale on the opening day there have been league and cup defeats at Oxford and Cardiff respectively, as well as Wednesday night’s Checkatrade Trophy draw with Fulham U21.
Now Jackett wants to see some improvements against a Saddlers side who currently sit above them on goal difference.
The Blues boss said: “Both of our league outings so far have been tight for the majority of the games and so we want to try, if we can, to get a bit more control.
"It’s obviously a better standard in League One, but that’s what everyone wanted."
“We’ve won one and lost one – and that’s probably about right. We have to keep working hard and keep improving wherever we can.
“It’s obviously a better standard in League One, but that’s what everyone wanted after four years in the bottom division.
“There are also a lot of hungry teams and we have to match that before we can start showing our quality.
“Walsall are young and full of energy, and for the past couple of games they’ve played three at the back.
“They have some youthful energy, particularly in midfield. We’ll have to counter that if we want a good result.”
Milan Lalkovic could return from an ankle injury on Saturday, although Matt Clarke and Nathan Thompson will not feature.
Jackett said: “It’s probably a week early for Thompson, but there’s an under-23 game next week and he’ll play in it.
“He’s training and very close, but of all the injured players it’s Lalkovic who’s most likely to be around on Saturday.
“It’ll be six weeks for Matt on Saturday and we have to respect that barrier, but he’s going very well and we’re pleased with his rehab.”