Portsmouth boss Paul Hart expects Everton defender Sylvain Distin to be given warm reception on his return to Fratton Park.

He said: "Sylvain was a great player for us. It has been well documented what I thought of him.

"I valued Sylvain. Unfortunately his situation was something I couldn't do anything about. So we were really disappointed to lose him, obviously. When you look at the money which was paid for Joleon Lescott and how much money in return was paid for Sylvain, it shows how few top defenders there are in this country.

"Along with Sol (Campbell), Glen (Johnson), Hermann (Hreidarsson), (Peter) Crouch and (David) James he turned in magnificent performances for us last season. I've no idea what reaction he will get. I haven't spent the last few nights thinking about it.

"I would imagine he would get a good reception. It's hard to say what it will be like – he's the enemy now anyway!"