Portsmouth defender Martin Cranie has backed his club's move for Southampton winger Nathan Dyer.

Cranie told The News: "I was with Nathan at Southampton and he's a very good player. Over the years a lot of people have compared him to Shaun Wright-Phillips. I think he plays exactly the same if you look at it.

"He's a right winger who's direct, very quick and has got the ability to beat a player, and his crossing has improved a lot. He's got absolutely everything.

"He would be a very good acquisition to any Premier League squad to be honest. It's just about a club giving him the chance to show what he can do. I think everyone needs to be given a couple of games to settle just to get used to it. Obviously, it's a lot different to playing in the Championship.

"But if Nathan gets into the Premier League, he can do very well. If you look at the top flight, most of the strikers have got pace - that's what he's got as well.

"It's not up to me. I can't tell the club who to sign, but I think he could do well in the Premier League."