Portsmouth ace set for Thursday scan in new injury blow
John Mousinho has had a few miserable days both on and off the pitch, with another considerable injury concern hitting his Portsmouth squad.
Late goals in back-to-back games against Championship play-off hopefuls Millwall and Coventry have dented their push for safety with five games left to play.
Since their victory against Leeds on 9 March, which put Pompey 10 points clear of the drop zone, they have recorded one win in five, meaning they sit just three points above the relegation places.
Portsmouth injury woes continue
Mousinho confirmed Alexander Milosevic missed Wednesday night’s defeat against Coventry, with the defender expected to have a scan on Thursday to assess its severity.
“He felt his calf in training, so we will wait and see on the scan,” said Mousinho, as quoted by The News, who will hope for positive news on Milosevic after an injury crisis at centre-back all season.
Having dealt with severe injuries to centre-backs Conor Shaughnessy and Ibane Bowat for most of the season, Milosevic signed on a free as defensive cover in March following his departure from Swedish side AIK.
The former Swedish international has yet to play for Portsmouth, with Regan Poole and Connor Ogilvie pairing up at the heart of the defence for the last four games.
Milosevic has only featured on the bench twice since his arrival, but this fresh injury concern means Mousinho has no recognised centre-backs on the bench against Coventry.
Mousinho receives huge defensive boost
Rob Atkinson’s expected return to training is a massive boost for Portsmouth’s survival bid, having been out of the matchday squad since their defeat to Luton at the beginning of March.
Mousinho also confirmed earlier in the week that Shaugnessy could return soon after his hamstring injury was picked up in their 2-1 win over Cardiff in February.
The visit of relegation rivals Derby County on Saturday afternoon at Fratton Park could define Pompey’s season, with the Rams’ impressive form under new manager John Eustace taking them out of the relegation places after four wins in six.
The reverse fixture was Portsmouth’s worst performance of the season: labelled by Mousinho as an ‘embarrassing display’ in a 4-0 rout at Pride Park in December that left them just outside the relegation places on goal difference.
With some tricky away trips to Norwich and Sheffield Wednesday, either side of a home encounter against Watford, Pompey’s hopes of avoiding a potential relegation showdown on the final day against Hull City could depend more on their luck off the field than on it.