View: 41% Portsmouth ace must respond after Mousinho sends clear message v Oxford United
John Mousinho has sent a message to Will Norris after Portsmouth were beaten 6-1 by Stoke City in the EFL Championship on Wednesday (2 October).
Life back in the Championship has been incredibly difficult for Mousinho and his players. After their EFL League One title-winning campaign, Pompey would have become accustomed to largely having things their own way at Fratton Park.
However, things have been quite the opposite since their return to the second tier of English football.
Following three draws from their opening three league matches, Mousinho’s side picked up just one point from their next five games – in a 0-0 draw with Sheffield United at Fratton Park (28 September).
After what was a positive display and their second clean sheet of the season, it was perhaps then a surprise to see Portsmouth handed their worst defeat since returning to the Championship in their following match, as they were beaten 6-1 by Stoke City at the bet365 Stadium.
Following that humiliation on the road, Mousinho responded and sent a clear message to goalkeeper Norris, benching him for the visit of Oxford United to Fratton Park on Saturday (5 October), a message which the 31-year-old must respond to.
Norris has probably become so accustomed to starting for Portsmouth that he doesn’t even question whether or not he will be given the nod.
The shot-stopper started his 54th consecutive league game against Stoke. However, that tremendous run has come to an end against Oxford United.
And in all reality, it would be difficult to blame Mousinho for leaving Norris out after his display in midweek.
Will Norris dropped by John Mousinho for Portsmouth v Oxford United
As per Sofascore, the keeper made just two saves, preventing -2.66 goals at the bet365 – effectively meaning he let in two-and-a-half goals more than he should have.
In addition, he made one error which led to a goal and also gave away a penalty on what was an evening to forget.
He completed just 41 per cent of his passes, with just four of his 22 long balls accurate and lost the one ground duel he contested.
Mousinho’s decision to bench Norris and start Nicolas Schmid instead is a clear message that that kind of performance will not be tolerated, no matter who you are.
Therefore, Norris must now go about proving to Mousinho that he deserves to reclaim his place. However, if anyone can do that, it is the Portsmouth number one.
His showing against Stoke was out of character, with the Englishman putting in some fine displays this season, particularly in the 0-0 draw with Sheffield United. That afternoon he made four saves and prevented 0.98 goals.
All four of his saves came from shots inside the box, while he also played eight accurate long balls. It was a similar story in the 2-2 draw with Middlesbrough (24 August).
That day, despite conceding twice, Norris still prevented 0.78 goals overall and made five saves, while once again playing eight accurate long balls.
As a result, Portsmouth fans will not doubt that the shot-stopper can get back to his best.
In other Portsmouth news, Josh Murphy shared a “frustrating” claim ahead of the clash with Oxford United.
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