Pompey go into administration

Portsmouth have gone into administration for the second time in as many years.

Championship strugglers now facing 10-point deduction

Portsmouth have gone into administration for the second time in as many years. The Championship club were placed into administration at a High Court hearing on Friday after they were issued with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue and Customs on 3 January. HMRC wanted the Championship club wound up over a tax bill of £1.6million that is yet to be paid. Pompey were desperate to avoid footballing extinction and their application to go into administration has been granted. Former Chelsea and Leeds chief executive Trevor Birch has been appointed as Portsmouth's administrator. Birch is the head of PKF's London corporate recovery and insolvency practice and a member of the firm's Football Industry Group. Portsmouth will now be handed 10-point deduction from the Football League which will leave them in 21st place in the table just above the drop zone. Pompey were plunged into another financial crisis after their parent company, Convers Sports Initiatives (CSI), went into administration in November. In February 2010 Portsmouth became the first Premier League club to enter administration and were deducted nine points, condemning them to relegation and they now face another fight to avoid dropping out of the Championship.