Portsmouth and Charlton Athletic played out a 2-2 draw at The Valley on Saturday afternoon, a game which caused all types of headaches for Danny Cowley.

The former Huddersfield manager has revealed it was difficult to work out how the hosts would line up come 3 o’clock on Saturday afternoon due to their squad size.

After the game Cowley stated to South London Press: "We couldn’t pick their team. I wouldn’t like to be Nigel picking that lot."

The Pompey boss went into some detail discussing how the game panned out, noting how Charlton switched formations late in the first-half, which was a key moment in the game as Charlton overcame the Pompey first-half dominance to gain a point.

Cowley revealed how he had been up at three o’clock in the morning [Saturday], stating: "We did all the detail on each of the players they have got."

He was also keen to highlight Charlton striker, Jayden Stockley, who had been heavily linked with Pompey in the last window, but decided to join Charlton after a previous successful loan spell from Preston North End.

When discussing Stockley, Cowley said he has a lot of respect for the striker, recognising the threat the former Exeter City man possesses and shows just why Pompey wanted to bring him to Fratton Park in the summer.

But Cowley was left ‘really disappointed’ with the second half performance, saying: "That’s the second time we’ve conceded quickly. It was a needless goal as well because it’s such an unnecessary goal to give away when their player is dribbling towards the goal-line and a throw on. We always say the sidelines are an extra defender, so we don’t need to foul in those areas. We’ve just not done our job in the front zone. We’re geared up to deal with that and we didn’t."

The Verdict

Given the start Charlton have made to the season with just one win from their opening nine games, it's understandable why Cowley was disappointed not to get all three points, especially after leading twice in the game.

The result leaves Cowley's side in 10th, just two points off the play-offs. Charlton sit in 22nd after a very disappointing start to the season for the Addicks.