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Former Celtic man's ambition to break up Pompey partnership after QPR bow

· Jordan Cross · 2026-08-16T04:08:32+00:00 · nguồn gốc

‘Coming here to play’: Former Celtic man fires ambition to break up first-choice Portsmouth partnership after QPR bow It’s a blunt message from the arrival from Premier League Brentford, with clear Championship ambitions for the 20-year-old after his second-tier bow. Benjy Arthur has made it clear he’s not coming to be bit-part player after his Pompey bow. The Brentford capture has set out his stall to feature prominently for the Blues, after completing his season-long loan arrival this week. Arthur: ‘I’m absolutely coming here to play’ And Arthur sees centre-back competition at Fratton Park to push him forward, as he looks to fulfil his promising potential. The former Celtic man made his maiden appearance for John Mousinho’s men in the second half, after a calamitous period in which the Blues shipped three goals in 14 minutes before the interval in the 3-1 loss. It was Arthur’s first outing at Championship level, with his previous senior experience coming in cup competition for the Bees and north of the border over the second half of last season. The 20-year-old’s ambitions are now clear, as he aims to break up the partnership between Conor Shaughnessy and Regan Poole in a department currently awash with options. Arthur told The News: ‘It’s been great to join such a massive club. ‘I got a taste and understanding of the Championship and how it’s going to be when I came on. ‘We’re going to fight together and play aggressive football. ‘It’s going to to be a great season for me to learn and hopefully put in some good performances for the team. ‘I’m absolutely coming here to play, I’m coming to fight for my place in the team and play as many games as I can. ‘Competition is part of the game and I feel the whole defender department is going to push each other to get better. It’s a great experience and a great learning opportunity for me.’ Arthur’s debut ended in disappointment, despite the former Peterborough man being impressed as Pompey started the game in powerful fashion and took the lead with a 30-yard drive from Terry Devlin. The Blues’ early dominance was worthy of greater reward, before QPR came back into the game in unlikely fashion with their triple salvo. Arthur sees plenty of room for improvement, however, as he and other new faces settle into their new surroundings. He said: ‘I’ve settled in well over the past few days, though this defeat leaves a bitter taste. ‘It’s now how we planned to start the season and we want to be successful, but it’s a long season and we’ll pick ourselves up. ‘We had a lot of chances first half and played well, dominated the game and landed on second ball. ‘It was a really positive start, so maybe it’s being clinical and taking the sting out of the game. ‘That’s something we’ll pick up on as we develop together over the next few weeks.’