John Mousinho ‘looked at’ in manager hunt amid ‘unbelievable’ Portsmouth claim
John Mousinho has been impressive in his role as the Portsmouth manager and his work has certainly not gone unnoticed.
Those who are not aware of Mousinho may not believe that Portsmouth is his first job as a manager as he earned promotion from League One in his first full season with them.
The English tactician is now on course to avoid relegation with Pompey after enduring a difficult start to life in the Championship as the Fratton Park outfit five places above the danger zone.
The fact that Mousinho has managed to achieve so much despite Portsmouth having one of the smallest budgets in the division has led many to tip him for the manager of the season award.
Lee Hendrie fires Mousinho warning to Portsmouth
However, this might not be entirely good news for Portsmouth as Mousinho is now likely to attract interest from other clubs looking for a manager.
That is exactly what Lee Hendrie, who has described his achievement of ending Pompey’s 12-year wait for Championship promotion as “unbelievable”, is thinking.
| Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals | Points | Points Per Match |
| 116 | 53 | 31 | 32 | 181:147 | 190 | 1.64 |
The pundit reckons clubs will already be looking at Mousinho’s progress with the Hampshire-based closely as he continues to work wonders with a minimal budget.
However, he is hopeful that Portsmouth are able to give the 38-year-old the support he needs and keep him in their books.
“John Mousinho is another one who has had a brilliant season, a real tough start to the campaign finding his feet coming out of League One, having been absolutely brilliant”, Hendrie told FLW (17 March).
“He’s got a lot of credit at the club for where he’s taken them, season after season they got so close under different managers and then he’s come in to steer the ship forward. It’s been unbelievable.
“They’ve found that little bit of form, it looks like they’re going to be safe this season through having a recent good run of form.
“That’s down to him getting a togetherness. I think losing games and then giving time in the Championship is difficult, which he deserved. They stuck with him and they’re getting the end result now. It’s brilliant to see.
“The problem is when you don’t have a high budget, other clubs do look at what success you’ve achieved and how you’ve managed to continue on the way you have under a minimal spend. I think that appeals to a lot of clubs.
“That will be the thing about John Mousinho. Hopefully Portsmouth stay up and give him the resources to invest next season because it’s a massive club that can certainly go forward with its potential and that push from above.”
Mousinho to stay at Fratton Park
There are only four points separating Portsmouth and the relegation zone, meaning they have not secured safety yet.
However, with four other teams between them and 22nd-placed Derby County, it would be a surprise if Mousinho failed to keep Pompey in the Championship.
If and when that happens, the Eisners must come up with a plan to push the boat to keep the London-born tactician at Fratton Park.
It remains to be seen if he will be tempted by the prospect of managing a team with better resources elsewhere.