Portsmouth legend shares John Mousinho verdict as Premier League claim mooted
Yakubu has weighed in on John Mousinho, who continues to strive for Premier League promotion.
Portsmouth are still recovering from an “injustice” against Norwich City during a narrow 2-1 defeat at Fratton Park.
This comes after Pompey scraped a 1-0 win against Oxford United in their opening Championship game of the season.
Premier League promotion is the end goal, and while the season is long, Portsmouth will need to do more to turn things around. But Yakubu has given his verdict on whether Mousinho is the right man to lead Pompey to new heights.
Yakubu warns Mousinho will need club backing
Mousinho took over at Portsmouth in January 2023 after Danny Cowley was relieved from his position. The appointment marked his first senior managerial role.
Mousinho defied all odds when he led Pompey back to the Championship after a 12-year absence, after becoming League One title winners on the final day.
Portsmouth’s return to the Championship was tame but ended in a respectable 16th-place finish behind Queens Park Rangers. With one win and one defeat, Pompey are on track to reaching greater heights this season.
However, former Pompey forward Yakubu believes that he will need more investment to stand a chance at promotion.
Speaking to Gambling.com, he said: “He’s doing alright. You have to give him credit, moving from one step to another. When you watched them play last season, they were decent.
“But this season is not going to be easy. Every season is getting tougher and tougher. He knows already that every season there is going to be pressure and more pressure. Managers aren’t given chances anymore to turn things around.
“I hope he can take the club to the Premier League, that’s the target, and get investors to sponsor the team and make the team become better.”
Why Pompey need to sign a striker this summer
Portsmouth are in desperate need of another striker and have returned to the market to find a solution before the 1 September.
Colby Bishop’s missed penalty against Norwich highlighted that there is still room for improvement in the finishing department at Pompey.
Mousinho’s side took 19 shots against Norwich in the Championship but scored one goal. This was seven more shots than their opponents, who ended up winning the tie. Portsmouth also had two big chances missed, which was one more than the away team.
| Portsmouth | Attacking statistics | Norwich City |
| 1 | Goals | 2 |
| 19 | Total shots | 11 |
| 3 | Shots on target | 5 |
| 2 | Big chances | 3 |
| 2 | Big chances missed | 1 |
St Johnstone striker Makenzie Kirk is one name on the shortlist. Including a potential transfer fee and his wages, Pompey could splash around £1million to bring Kirk to Fratton Park this summer.
However, if Pompey cannot get his transfer over the line, Mousinho will need to think of a more creative way to solve his goalscoring problem.
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