Mousinho speaks out on Josh Murphy exit at Portsmouth
Portsmouth boss John Mousinho has provided an update on the future of winger Josh Murphy.
Murphy joined the South Coast side last summer on a free transfer and since then has become a crucial part of John Mousinho’s plans.
In 35 Championship appearances, the Englishman has seven goals and 10 assists, proving to be one of the best attackers for Pompey in their turbulent season.
Given Portsmouth’s unclear status for the next season, a number of players have been linked with an exit from Fratton Park and Murphy is one of them.
Murphy to leave in the summer?
Being one of the best players for Portsmouth has seen Murphy attract a lot of interest.
The former Oxford United winger scored the winning goal against Blackburn Rovers, which allowed Pompey to take a huge step towards Championship safety.
Mousinho’s side aren’t safe yet as they are separated by just five points from the bottom three and lot of work remains to be done.
Murphy’s outstanding goal contribution output has attracted the attention of other Championship sides, but Mousinho is relaxed regarding the links and a possible exit, insisting that his focus remains on the seven remaining games.
| Opposition | Home/Away |
| Millwall | Away |
| Coventry | Away |
| Derby County | Home |
| Norwich | Away |
Speaking his weekly press conference (2 April), as per the club’s website, he said: “I’m not really concerned if there’s interest in him.
“If it happens, it happens. We will deal with that if – and when – it comes. The only focus I have at the moment is the next seven games.
“There are absolutely no rumours, murmurs anything from Murph, anything from anybody else about anything otherwise.
“If it pops up in the summer, it’s a lovely compliment to the work Murph is doing and, if that happens, we’ll deal with it. But, as far as I’m concerned, we have those next seven games to deal with and Murph is extremely happy.”
Championship safety the only goal for Portsmouth
Mousinho’s focus is undeterred which is a positive sign as only survival matters in these finals seven games.
The dynamics of the bottom half of the table are changing drastically and any side that can go on a winning run is able to pull themselves out of the relegation trouble.
Derby County are the latest example. They have managed to go on a four-game winning streak which has pulled them out of the drop zone and increased pressure on teams around them.
Portsmouth have lost three of their last five games and cannot afford to drop any more points. If the South Coast side is to maintain their Championship status for next season, Mousinho will need his key players like Colby Bishop, Freddie Potts and Murphy to deliver.
If Pompey do get relegated, a whole host of players could Fratton Park, with interest high in some of the players like Murphy and Andre Dozzell.