Avram Grant's record at Chelsea shows that Portsmouth have made a shrewd appointment

By Martin Lipton in Laptop with Martin Lipton

Published 16:39 07/10/09

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Avram Grant is back in football - and that can only be a good thing.

Grant's return to Portsmouth in the role of Director of Football comes 17 months after he was a single kick of the ball from winning the Champions League with Chelsea .

The Israeli's subsequent treatment by Chelsea was symptomatic of the way the Stamford Bridge club operates and in the interim Grant has passed on a number of decent options because he wanted to prove himself in England again.

Grant will give Paul Hart all the support he needs and it is interesting to see David James' initial reaction suggesting the Pompey players realise they have had another boost after the events of the past few days.

It was easy for the detractors to deride Grant but both John Terry and Michael Ballack gave different assessments and the Israeli's treatment of Frank Lampard after the death of his mother was an object lesson in how to deal with a player.

Then again, when your father is a Holocaust survivor , it does give you a sense of perspective that others may lack.

For all those who sneered at Grant, it might be interesting to note the people he remains on good terms with and who treat him with respect - including Arsene Wenger, Sir Alex Ferguson and Harry Redknapp.

Helping Hart pull round the Pompey ship is arguably an even harder task than filling the void left by Jose Mourinho. But there is no doubt that Grant will give everything in his power to pull it off.

And if Fratton Park is playing host to Premier League football this time next year, he might, you never know, even get a bit of credit.

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