Mousinho ‘will be annoyed with what Portsmouth defenders did’ v Millwall
John Mousinho and the Portsmouth team must share the blame after what went wrong against Millwall at The Den.
It was yet another Championship away defeat for Pompey on Saturday (5 April), putting them back within just four points of the relegation zone.
The Blues just appear incapable to put the survival battle behind them once and for all, and continue their dismal travel-sickness.
Mousinho will be ‘frustrated’ by Portsmouth defending
Mousinho has taken plenty of flak since Pompey conceded the two second-half goals to Mihailo Ivanovic at The Den on Saturday.
But the head coach will in turn by disappointed by what he saw from his defensive players for the decisive moments against Alex Neil’s Millwall outfit.
The Lions have now beaten Pompey by a single goal on three separate occasions this term, across league and cup.
Mark McAdam, covering the match in-vision live on Sky Sports News (5 April, 16:18), described Ivanovic’s opening goal as a particularly difficult moment to take, given how easily the striker got between Pompey defenders to head into the far corner.
“I’ve got to be honest, it’s a game with very little quality, and this is a goal that will frustrate John Mousinho,” McAdam said.
“Defensively, Portsmouth should do so much better. Nice and simple. Honeyman wraps the free-kick in right-footed, Ivanovic loses his man, and he gets that bit of space to guide his header into the corner.”
Championship survival battle has not gone away yet
Portsmouth are making matters all too familiar for their supporters: win at home and appear to be safe in the Championship for next season; lose away and get dragged back into the dogfight.
We are now into the run-in, with every club in the division ready to contest their final six fixtures of the campaign, and Pompey’s gap is now – again – four points.
It has been four, seven and 10 all within the past month and bearing in mind there has been an international break wedged in the middle of that, it’s a glaring sign of Pompey’s inconsistency.
| POS | Championship away table 2024-25 | PLD | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS |
| 23 | Portsmouth | 20 | 2 | 4 | 14 | 19 | 45 | -26 | 10 |
Except unfortunately, beneath the surface, it is depressingly consistent. Win at home; lose away. Pompey have to go to a very well-structured Coventry City side in midweek in an attempt to move clear of the chasing pack, and the trend must be bucked.
Pompey also have to host Derby County and Hull City in among their final three Fratton Park fixtures, which could be scarily defining.