Jackett’s number two seeking success
Pompey have appointed Joe Gallen as assistant manager on a two-year deal.
He has worked with Blues boss Kenny Jackett at a number of clubs, enjoying promotion-winning spells at both Millwall and Wolves.
Gallen said: “I hold Kenny in high regard – as a manager and a coach. He’s someone I’ve looked up to over the years.
“We managed to get big clubs like Millwall and Wolves out of League One – and now we’re looking to try to be successful again at Portsmouth.
"We need to build a competitive team that the supporters are excited about."
“It’s tough not to mention promotion when you come to a huge club like this.
“I’m not going to go on record about when that might be, but the fans don’t want to hear about consolidation.
“We need to build a competitive team that the supporters are excited about and want to come and see.
“I was down at Fratton Park a number of times last season and the atmosphere was fantastic.
“The passion of the fans meant they were almost sucking the ball into the net. I was really impressed.
“I was at one game when the opposition scored first and I expected the crowd to turn, but they actually grew even louder.”
Gallen was a striker at Watford, Exeter, Shrewsbury, Dundalk, Stevenage and Drogheda before injury forced him to hang up his boots at the age of just 26.
The former Republic of Ireland under-21 international is the older brother of Kevin Gallen, who played Premier League football with QPR.