Portsmouth leaving nothing to chance in relegation fight

Portsmouth's Lomana Tresor Lua Lua (L) puts the ball past Manchester United's Mikael Silvestre. Portsmouth's desperate struggle to beat relegation from the Premiership takes them to Wigan, where they hope to have LuaLua back - thanks in part to some unorthodox medical treatment.

Portsmouth's desperate struggle to beat relegation from the Premiership takes them to Wigan, where they hope to have striker Lomana LuaLua back - thanks in part to some unorthodox medical treatment.

The Democratic Republic of Congo forward has missed Portsmouth's last three matches after he injured his ankle while celebrating his equalising goal in the 1-1 home draw against Arsenal on April 12 with one his trademark back flips.

With his side just two points above third-bottom Birmingham with two games remaining, manager Harry Redknapp has decided to risk LuaLua on Saturday.

A scan of the ankle earlier this week showed some minor ligament damage but nothing too serious, giving LuaLua the all-clear to play once he regains full fitness.

In a desperate attempt to get him ready for Wigan, LuaLua has been spending time in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, a procedure designed to increase oxygen levels and speed up recovery time.

"We need him with us in our situation," said Redknapp. "We need all our best players fit and Lomana is a matchwinner.

"It's very tight at the bottom of the table and there's still everything to play for, but if you'd given me this situation a couple of months ago, I'd have taken it."

At that time, Portsmouth seemed destined for relegation, but a sequence of just one defeat in eight games has altered the outlook dramatically. Redknapp's team could secure another season in English football's top tier on Saturday if they win at Wigan and Birmingham fail to beat Newcastle at home.

"The turning point was when we beat Manchester City 2-1 at Fratton Park on March 11," said Redknapp. "Pedro Mendes scored a last minute winner from 25 yards and we haven't looked back since.

"It gave myself, the players and the fans the lift we desperately needed. If Pedro hadn't scored that I think we might have been down by now."

LuaLua's goals have also helped Portsmouth. He had scored four goals in four games before injuring himself against Arsenal.

"People have asked me whether I'll ever celebrate in the same way again," said the former Newcastle attacker. "My honest answer is that you can never say never."

Redknapp and his players will come up against their former captain Arjan De Zeeuw in Saturday's game.

The dominant Dutch defender made 116 appearances in three years at Portsmouth and led the club into the Premiership under Redknapp in 2003.

De Zeeuw rejoined his former club Wigan last summer after Redknapp had left Fratton Park following a much-publicised dispute with chairman Milan Mandaric.

Redknapp moved to rivals Southampton, where he experienced relegation from the Premiership last season, before returning to lead Portsmouth's recovery in November.

"You wonder why they let Harry go in the first place," said De Zeeuw. "The chairman made a mistake then rectified it.

"Harry is the kind of manager who lets you play and be creative. He also treats everyone at the club with respect.

"Harry seems to work miracles with smaller clubs. He tried to get me to sign for Southampton, but I was captain and player of the year at Portsmouth and I didn't think it would have been a wise move."

Wigan are currently ninth in the Premiership table as the curtain begins to close on their first season in the top-flight.

"I think we need to improve on our goal scoring next year," said manager Paul Jewell. "And that's not just the strikers, but the whole team.

"I don't want to be too critical after such a good season, but sometimes we do lack someone who would bust a gut to get us a goal."