Major transfer news has emerged about Portsmouth forward Ellis Harrison, regarding where he will be playing his football next season.

What's the talk?

According to Portsmouth outlet The News, Harrison is closing in on a move to League One outfit Oxford United this week. Harrison favours a transfer to Oxford over other interested parties and is now on the verge of leaving Portsmouth for Karl Robinson's side.

The report claims Portsmouth have been keen to sell Harrison this summer as Danny Cowley looks to reshape his squad ahead of next season. Harrison is said to be one of the highest-earners within the Pompey squad in League One, which is one of the reasons behind his prospective sale.

Back in 2020, at-the-time Pompey assistant manager Joe Gallen praised the “aggressive” forward for his selflessness on the pitch. He told The News:

"When Ellis is really on his game, for League One he is very hard to handle.
"He’s a very aggressive player, he’s a very good foil for a goalscorer.
"Some centre-forwards just want to score and that’s fine. When Ellis goes onto the football pitch, although he’s a centre-forward, he’s actually a real team player."

Fans will love it

Portsmouth fans will love this news as it means that the club are on the verge of getting rid of an underperforming player ahead of next season. Harrison has struggled to find his best form for Pompey since arriving from Ipswich in 2019, with just nine League One goals in two years. He managed four goals in 25 appearances in the season just gone, highlighting his lack of form in front of goals, and this is why fans should be happy to see him depart from Fratton Park in the coming days/weeks.

The £4.3k-per-week dud is the third-highest earner at Portsmouth and his performances have not reflected that for the club in League One. He ranked 13th in the squad for average WhoScored ratings in the 2020/21 campaign, playing 25 times across the season. This suggests that Portsmouth have been overpaying Harrison for his services and, therefore, shipping him on could be a smart move by the club from a financial standpoint, as well as from the footballing side.

This deal could be a shrewd piece of business from Portsmouth. It should allow Cowley to replace an underperforming member of his team with a new arrival, as the fee Oxford are set to pay for Harrison - which remains undisclosed - could potentially help Portsmouth land one of Cowley's targets.

Now it is down to Portsmouth and Cowley to bring in an excellent player to replace Harrison and improve the squad to boost their chances of promotion.

AND in other news, Pompey handed major transfer boost with “strong” £3.4k-p/w ace, Cowley would love him...