Stoke City are top of the Championship, and they got there the hard way. Trailing at Portsmouth after six minutes, Mark Robins' side turned the game around after the break and won 2-1, with centre-back Ben Wilmot scoring the winner in the 77th minute.
Pompey start brightly
Portsmouth were without striker Marko Milovanovic and midfielder Iyad Mohamed, both injured in midweek against Swansea, but it did not show early on. Tyrese Shade, a summer signing from Burton Albion, bent a lovely shot into the far corner in the sixth minute for his first goal for the club.
The hosts dominated the first half. Stoke goalkeeper Viktor Johansson had to make a couple of important saves, one from Regan Poole after a marauding run and another from Odin Bailey's deflected shot. Captain Marlon Pack also went close with a long-range piledriver that only just cleared the bar.
Stoke find another gear
The second half belonged to the visitors. Ethan Galbraith grew increasingly influential, and in the 59th minute Stoke got level. Ben Johnson swung in a harmless-looking cross from the right, Portsmouth keeper Nicolas Schmid let it slip under his hands, and Terry Devlin's attempted clearance was blocked by Luca Bombino, who had been on the pitch for only two minutes. The ball ran to Jack McGlynn, who fired in with his left foot for his fifth goal of the season.
The winner came 18 minutes later. Wilmot, a former Watford defender, scored his third goal of the campaign to settle it.
A promotion statement
That was Stoke's fifth successive away win, which is the kind of run that makes a promotion case on its own. It was also Portsmouth's first defeat in seven matches, so the hosts will feel they let a good first half slip away.
For Robins, the table now reads the way he would want it before the international break, with his side on top and winning on the road.
Match facts: Portsmouth 1-2 Stoke City, Championship, Saturday 7 November 2026. Goals: Tyrese Shade 6' for Portsmouth; Jack McGlynn 59', Ben Wilmot 77' for Stoke. Stoke's fifth successive away win; Portsmouth's first defeat in seven matches. Source: BBC Sport.
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