"Incredible" - Pundit reacts to shock Colby Bishop moment for Portsmouth FC | OneFootball

The striker has returned to action after undergoing major surgery in pre-season.

Colby Bishop returning to action for Portsmouth and scoring a penalty in their first win of the season against Preston North End is possibly the "most heartwarming moment" of the EFL season so far, according to EFL pundit Ali Maxwell.

John Mousinho has been hit with a lot of fitness blows dating back to the early stages of last season. Even with many of the campaign-ending injuries that his players suffered, they still pulled through and managed to win League One, thus securing their return to the Championship.

Bishop was the man up top who led that charge, scoring 21 times in 44 appearances - the second most in the division.

Unfortunately after years of working his way up the football pyramid, the next part of the climb that has been his career was put on hold due to a major health problem. The 28-year-old was forced to have open-heart surgery in pre-season to tackle a potential risk that was found during a routine scan.

In what was a major blow for him and the team, his career was put on hold as he dealt with something much more important. Now he is back, and he made sure to leave his mark on the second tier in his first game back, scoring a penalty to help Pompey to a 3-1 victory over Preston.

Even with their first three points of the season, Portsmouth are still in the bottom three, but the return of Bishop will be a major boost to their survival hopes.

Ali Maxwell on "heartwarming" Colby Bishop return moment

Seeing the striker take to the pitch again and find the back of the net on his Championship debut was "the most heartwarming moment of the EFL weekend" according to Maxwell, the co-host of the Not The Top 20 Podcast.

He said: "Most Portsmouth fans that I've seen didn't even know that Colby Bishop was registered to play. I've seen it reported and discussed that the EFL gave special dispensation for Bishop to be registered and therefore able to play.

"The reason they didn't think he was registered was that Bishop had open-heart surgery in August, which, for someone who had fought so hard in his career, from non-league into League Two, into League One, and to get to the Championship being a star man for a Pompey team that won promotion last season.

"To essentially have his dream of Championship football put on hold with such a scary procedure, also with the extra context being that he had open-heart surgery 12 days after his baby was born with him and his partner. Months of recovery it has been, and I can't even imagine how difficult that has been for him and his family.

"For him to be able to play, for him to have come on and been given the penalty, obviously scored it; it's just an incredible story, the most heartwarming moment of the EFL weekend, and possibly of the whole season so far."

Colby Bishop is exactly what Portsmouth needed

The striker will need time to get back to full match fitness; after all, he is still recovering from such a major surgery. But now that he has built up some level of fitness and is available for selection, that should give Mousinho and his players a real boost.

Effectiveness in front of goal has been something that the Fratton Park residents have struggled with so far this season. Summer acquisitions Mark O'Mahony and Elias Sorensen have just three goals between them after 15 games, and Pompey are one of the lowest scorers in the division.

Bishop should help to turn that around pretty quickly. More and more good chances will need to be created for his full effect to be felt, but the chances of higher numbers of goals going in are better with the 28-year-old than without him.