With the curtain soon to come down on 2023, Pompey fans can look ahead to the new year with plenty of optimism.
There are still three games to play before January begins, but the side find themselves in an excellent position.
The Blues are sitting at the top of the League One standings, with a seven-point buffer to Peterborough in second.
Joe Morrell is certainly feeling optimistic about their chances, but knows that there is still a long way to go.
The midfielder said: “It’s been a decent year after a tough start and the previous manager – someone I had a great relationship with – leaving.
“Since then it’s been a good one from a Pompey perspective and although we haven’t achieved anything yet, we’ve put ourselves in a great position.
“I’ve played a lot of games and am enjoying my life off the pitch, so hopefully 2024 can be an even better one.
“Nobody’s getting carried away or too excited – we’ll leave that for the fans, who are hopefully seeing a team that represents them.
“The atmosphere has been amazing and that’s fed into those good performances, but there’s a lot of hard work still to do.
"I’ve played a lot of games and am enjoying my life off the pitch, so hopefully 2024 can be an even better one."
“We’ll approach the second half of the season with the same mentality that we showed in the first and see where that takes us.
“The potential of this club is massive – that’s why I came here. There have been some negative times, but I keep dreaming of what could be.”
There will be no time for the Pompey squad to put their feet up and enjoy the festivities as they embark on a hectic schedule.
Morrell said: “I’ve been conditioned not to enjoy it as much as your average person because we’ve got a job to do and it’s a busy time of year.
“I’m sure that when I’ve hung my boots up – whenever that is – I’ll learn to enjoy Christmas a little bit more.
“It’s something that we’re used to now and I’m sure that all the players would say exactly the same thing.”
Pompey’s final home fixture of the calendar year sees them welcome struggling Fleetwood to the south coast, with the visitors led by Morrell’s former Bristol City boss Lee Johnson.
The Wales international said: “We’re all aware that any game in this division isn’t an easy one and I know what their manager is all about.
“We’ve seen in the past that it’s tough against Fleetwood, but our intention is always to impose ourselves on the match.”