The transfer window closed may have closed at the start of February, but that did not stop Pompey doing an additional bit of business last week.
With injuries limiting the midfield options, John Mousinho swooped to add Lee Evans – available following his departure from Ipswich – to his table-topping squad.
The Welshman has plenty of League One experience, winning promotion from this division on three occasions.
And having received plenty of glowing references about life with the Blues, Evans was only to eager to join another Championship hunt.
The 29-year-old said: “It’s obviously a real honour and a privilege for me to sign for such a big football club.
“As soon as I knew the interest was there, I was desperate to get down here and be a part of, hopefully, something special.
“They didn’t need to sell it to me with the way the manager sets the team up to play and I think that will suit me.
"I spoke to Conor Chaplin and he was more excited than me! He was telling me how lucky I am to be coming down to play here."
“There have been quite a few links and I chatted with Michael Jacobs and George Hirst, as well as Callum Lang. Everyone had positive comments.
“I spoke to Conor Chaplin and he was more excited than me! He was telling me how lucky I am to be coming down to play here.
“I did have other interest, but this was the club I wanted to join. Now I’m here to do what I can until the end of the season.
“There’s a lot of quality here and you can see the boys are buzzing. I just have to be ready to contribute where I can.
“Everybody needs to be dedicated and working hard, pushing together to achieve that one common goal.”
Evans will now be looking to build up his sharpness again after recovering from surgery on a knee problem.
He said: “I’ve been finishing my rehab at Ipswich and I want to thank them for all the work they’ve done with me.
“I also did some training with the under-21s, but it was nice to have the first one [with Pompey] where the intensity was a bit sharper and I enjoyed it.”