View: Mousinho must stand by 75% Portsmouth ace v Hull City
John Mousinho should stick by Andre Dozzell when Portsmouth take on Hull City at the MKM Stadium on Saturday.
Pompey will be looking for just their second Championship win of the season when they make the trip to Humberside on 2 November.
It has been an incredibly difficult campaign for Mousinho’s side, with injuries certainly not helping. The Portsmouth boss has been forced to make constant changes at Fratton Park, with multiple players coming in and out of the team.
One player who was recently left out for the first time this season was club captain Marlon Pack. However, his exclusion from the team was not due to injury.
Pack had started all of Portsmouth’s Championship matches this term before being benched for the 2-1 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday at Fratton Park on Friday 25 October.
That evening he made way for summer signing Dozzell, who hadn’t appeared in the Championship since September.
After starting Portsmouth’s first five league matches, before coming on as a substitute in the sixth, Dozzell was an unused substitute for five straight matches.
However, he returned to the starting lineup against the Owls, and after his display on the night, Mousinho cannot afford to drop him against Hull City, even with Pack waiting in the wings.
Andre Dozzell must start for Portsmouth v Hull City
Dozzell looked good against Sheffield Wednesday, especially considering he hadn’t featured for over a month.
As per Sofascore, he completed 73 per cent of his passes, with one of his three crosses accurate and one of his two long balls also accurate.
However, it was defensively where he really shone. The 25-year-old won three of his five ground duels and 75 per cent of his aerial duels (three out of four), while he also made two interceptions and one clearance.
In addition, he made three tackles and was efficient in possession, giving the ball away just nine times while also winning two fouls for his side, without committing one of his own.
While Mousinho might be tempted to recall Pack, who replaced Dozzell in the defeat to the Owls, completing 93 per cent of his passes after coming on, the Portsmouth boss should resist this temptation.
Dropping Dozzell after a relatively bright display would send the wrong message out to the rest of the squad, and Mousinho certainly can’t axe Freddie Potts after his performance.
Therefore, Pack will have to wait, otherwise, Mousinho is at risk of upsetting Dozzell if he drops him after the midfielder did little wrong.
In other Portsmouth news, Ian Darke can’t believe what has been said about Mousinho ahead of the clash with Hull City.
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