Angelos Basinas €1.4 million per annum with AEK Athens, choosing the number 14. Despite the pre-season odds, AEK underachieved during the first half of the season and lost the title race too early, making Basinas favourable towards a new move during the winter transfer period. On 2 February 2009, Portsmouth confirmed the signing of Basinas on an eighteen-month contract. He made his debut for Portsmouth on 7 February 2009 against Liverpool. Just a few hours after his debut, manager Tony Adams, who brought Basinas in, was sacked by the club and replaced by Paul Hart. Under the new manager, Basinas hardly played
Paul Hart on 14 February 2009. Hart continued as caretaker manager until the end of the 2008–09 season, Portsmouth executive chairman Peter Storrie announcing in March 2009, after a close 1–0 defeat to Chelsea, "(Alexandre Gaydamak) and I have been delighted with how the team have fared. They both have so much experience in the game and they have the respect of the players. We will review the managerial situation again at the end of the season." Hart was appointed as permanent manager on a two-year contract on 21 July 2009. In the 2009–10 season, however, Portsmouth, a club in turmoil and