John Mousinho needs to drop Andre Dozzell to avoid Portsmouth relegation
Portsmouth fans will be fearing relegation, and those fears could become a reality if John Mousinho continues to start Andre Dozzell.
Pompey looked as though they were set for Championship safety after a positive run of form in recent months.
However, after back-to-back defeats against Plymouth and Preston ahead of the March international break, relegation is once again a possibility for Portsmouth at Fratton Park.
Mousinho was left fuming with the Portsmouth players after they were beaten 2-1 by Preston at Deepdale on Saturday (15 March).
Therefore, it is fair to assume that the 38-year-old could look to make some changes when Pompey return to Championship action against Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park on Saturday (29 March).
And one player who needs to make way is Dozzell after the midfielder’s recent displays.
Mousinho needs to drop Dozzell at Portsmouth
There were plenty of disappointing displays against Preston, with Regan Poole in particular letting Mousinho down.
However, Dozzell didn’t exactly cover himself in glory either. As per Sofascore, the 25-year-old failed to provide an accurate cross from five attempts and lost all four of his ground duels and his one aerial duel.
While it wasn’t necessarily the worst one-off performance, these lacklustre displays have become something of a pattern for Dozzell in recent weeks, which will be of concern to Mousinho.
| Portsmouth 2024/25 | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Andre Dozzell | 34 | 1 | 1 |
In the 2-1 defeat against Plymouth at Fratton Park on Wednesday 12 March, Dozzell only managed to provide one accurate long ball from four attempts, while he won just 50 per cent of his aerial duels.
The Englishman really struggled in the 1-0 defeat to Luton Town at Kenilworth Road on Saturday 1 March, completing just 69 per cent of his passes and winning just one of his three ground duels and one of his four aerial duels, while also failing to provide an accurate cross from two attempts.
Therefore, it is clear that something needs to change, and luckily for Mousinho, he already has a like-for-like replacement, with Isaac Hayden waiting in the wings.
Mousinho needs to send a message to Dozzell
Sometimes when a player is out of form what they need is a good shake-up.
Dropping Dozzell to the bench would do just that, and bringing in Hayden, who will be hungry to perform, could lift Portsmouth’s performances.
It doesn’t mean Dozzell won’t play again this season, it can just be a way of Mousinho telling the player to lift his performance levels.
However, if Mousinho refuses to do this and continues to start Dozzell, the midfielder could continue to put in subpar performances which might eventually cause trouble for Pompey and lead to relegation from the Championship.