Pompey fancied to land Johnson

Portsmouth are still refusing to confirm their interest in Chelsea’s out-of-favour right-back Glen Johnson – but the 21-year-old looks set to become manager Harry Redknapp’s first signing of the summer.

Redknapp is being provided with a £25m (€36.6m) budget to turn Pompey from perennial strugglers into UEFA Cup place candidates next season.

Tottenham’s Jermain Defoe, Chelsea’s Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wigan’s Henri Camara, Celtic’s Stilian Petrov and Middlesbrough’s former Fratton Park favourite Aiyegbeni Yakubu are all being linked with moves to Fratton Park – as well as a host of overseas stars.

But Redknapp will almost certainly start his Pompey revolution with the season-long loan-signing of Johnson, whom he has been chasing for six months.

Johnson, who came through the youth system at West Ham under Redknapp and signed a five-year contract for Chelsea in a £6m (€8.8m) deal in 2003, wants to kick-start his England career.

And he has been persuaded by the Pompey boss that a year on the south coast will be better for him than a spell on loan at a leading Dutch club – possibly Feyenoord – which is also available to him.

Chelsea blocked Redknapp’s bid to borrow Johnson in January despite only giving him a handful of first-team games last season – and are believed to have made it clear there is no chance of a permanent sale.

But Redknapp believes he will be getting a top-quality performer who is now mature enough to fulfil his vast potential.

Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric said: “Nothing has happened yet. Let us see a player signed before we get too excited.

“We are simply trying to make improvements – to bring in quality players. It is normal evolution.”

Mandaric is growing uneasy over the wild speculation about major new players surrounding the club he now only half-owns.

But the new campaign could be his last season at the club – with Franco-Russian billionaire Sacha Gaydamak, who owns the other 50%, taking over completely.

It has emerged that Mandaric, the chairman since 1999 but now with an investment in top Slovenian side Kopa, was not present at key transfer talks between Redknapp and 30-year-old Gaydamak in Tel Aviv two weeks ago.

But he will meet up with Gaydamak at the World Cup in Germany next week and said: “I will be here at the start of the season and I can’t see why I won’t be here at the end of the season as well, but nothing is guaranteed.

“Once I see Portsmouth can do without me it will be a lot easier to go. I want to make sure Sacha is totally comfortable here and I can see already he is falling in love with the club.”