Portsmouth 2; Aston Villa 1: The sun shone, the Pompey Chimes rang out and Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric not only counted the added revenue from Sky's coverage but also the extra 1,000 fans somehow shoehorned into the old home.

So why were so many looking so miserable by mid-afternoon at Fratton Park? Teddy Sheringham, new Portsmouth captain and already burdened with talismanic status, did at least claim that his scripted debut goal had given him as much joy as any other that the 37-year-old had ever scored. And, yes, the day had "gone to plan".

But only minutes after the game Harry Redknapp was peering pessimistically ahead, despite the buoyancy of victory on their return to the big time after 18 years.

One game gone and Redknapp rattled through his familiar "down to the bare bones" speech. "We've only really got a 14 to 15-man squad," he lamented. "It's nowhere near strong enough. If we get one or two injuries, we'll struggle."

Redknapp should be so unlucky. His latest confection was flavoured by six debutants (including one substitute), four over-30s, three West Ham rejects and one discarded by Villa. Yet the allsorts won easily. Unfortunately for Villa, that says more about them than Portsmouth.

Punters who have already wagered on Portsmouth going down might now consider covering themselves by entering Aston Villa into the equation. That may sound extreme on the evidence of 90 minutes but the Aston Villa manager David O'Leary was dampening expectations rapidly.

"This club, with its infrastructure, should be a top-six club," O'Leary said. "But at the moment the top six is set in stone. We finished only three points off relegation last season. Win or lose today I knew it would be a hard season ahead."

Redknapp and O'Leary face the same challenge. Both must manage on limited resources. Mandaric was about to call a halt to spending when Svetoslav Todorov suffered a long-term injury on Thursday. Now the chairman must fork out for another striker.

O'Leary, operating on "a tight budget", will now have to demonstrate Redknapp-like shrewdness in the bargain basement. After 13 months out of the Premiership O'Leary is confronted by a whole new ball game. Without Leeds' millions of yesteryear he concedes that this season will be a serious examination of his coaching abilities.

Then a hint of the old confidence returned: "If we've got good young players, there is no better manager to give them a chance."

If O'Leary has £1.5 million to spend, he will do well to find anyone of Amdy Faye's quality. The power and passing ability of the midfielder made him a rival for the man-of-the-match award with his team-mate Sheringham.

Gareth Barry and Gavin McCann performed with an industry mocking the efforts of so many team-mates.

Alpay was at fault on both Portsmouth goals and Juan Pablo Angel passed up two wonderful opportunities. By the time Barry scored with a penalty - two minutes before being sent off - Portsmouth were cruising on the wave of Sheringham's volley and Patrik Berger's clever finish.

Guardian Service