View: John Mousinho must demand more from 29% Portsmouth star after Hull City draw
John Mousinho must demand more from Callum Lang after the player’s performance in the 1-1 draw between Portsmouth and Hull City.
Pompey left the MKM Stadium with a much-needed point on Saturday (2 November).
After back-to-back defeats, it was important for John Mousinho’s side to get a positive result in the Championship.
Therefore, plenty of the travelling supporters would have likely taken a draw ahead of kick-off, with Hull City boss Tim Walter praising the Pompey faithful for their support throughout the match.
Mousinho’s side remain rooted to the bottom of the Championship table and will need to show a lot more in the coming weeks. However, this result on the road was certainly a step in the right direction.
The Portsmouth boss made some brave team selection decisions, once again omitting Marlon Pack and sticking by Andre Dozzell, while also handing Kusini Yengi his first Championship start.
However, it was one of Mousinho’s key men, Lang, who left a lot to be desired with his display at the MKM.
John Mousinho must demand more from Callum Lang after Portsmouth draw v Hull City
Lang has started 10 matches in the Championship for Portsmouth this season, scoring four goals and providing one assist.
He is the club’s top scorer and a very important player for Mousinho. However, the 26-year-old was far from his best against the Tigers.
As per Sofascore, he only managed to complete 29 per cent of his passes, with none of those key. In addition, his one cross into the box was inaccurate, and while he managed two shots on target, he also missed two big chances and hit the woodwork.
Had one of those chances gone in, it might have been a different story for Portsmouth. Lang’s performance on the ball was also poor, with the Englishman succeeding with just 40 per cent of his attempted dribbles (two out of five) and giving possession of the ball away 16 times.
He did win five of his eight ground duels and make one tackle, one interception and one clearance. However, while this is helpful for the team, it is not Lang’s defensive output which Mousinho will be most interested in.
The Portsmouth boss needs the forward to provide a meaningful threat in the final third, something which he couldn’t do against Hull City.
Therefore, while he certainly shouldn’t be considering dropping him, Mousinho will be hoping to see much more from Lang next time out.
In other Portsmouth news, Dan Bardell has predicted the outcome of the club’s Championship survival fight after their draw with Hull City.
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