John Mousinho makes bold call on Portsmouth penalties after Colby Bishop’s miss
Portsmouth rued their missed chances in the 2-1 defeat to Norwich at Fratton Park.
Norwich took an early two-goal lead and were the better side, but Portsmouth fought back and had many good opportunities to score in the second half.
Their best chance came from the penalty spot after a heavy challenge on Florian Bianchini, but Colby Bishop’s weak spot-kick was easily saved. That save meant Bishop had missed four of his last six penalties.
This poor record has led to calls for John Mousinho to change his penalty taker, and the Pompey boss has now responded.
John Mousinho backs Colby Bishop to keep taking Portsmouth penalties
Mousinho is developing a reputation for hiding tactical decisions from the media, but he had no hesitation in announcing who would be taking Portsmouth’s next penalty.
Speaking to The News, he backed his main man Bishop to score the next spot-kick his team were awarded.
He said: “Colby will remain our penalty talker. He has enough credit in the bank and there’s plenty of trust and plenty of confidence I have in him. I know he is going to pick up the next one and hopefully put it into the back of the net.”
Mousinho mentioned that Bishop has a history of scoring penalties in high-pressure situations, including the kick to win League One against Barnsley and his previous effort against Norwich at Carrow Road last season.
This nerve under pressure should help him to remain unfazed by his previous failures when he next steps up for Pompey.
Colby Bishop has the character to recover from poor run of missed penalties
Bishop has always shown the mentality of a player who doesn’t shy away from responsibility.
There was no chance of him ever asking to be removed from penalty-taking duty, and Mousinho knows his striker well enough to maintain confidence in him during these high-pressure situations.
Every striker faces setbacks in their career. The greats are separated by how well they can recover from their missed chances to score the next opportunity.
| Season | Appearances | Goals |
| 2022-23 | 51 | 22 |
| 2023-24 | 48 | 21 |
| 2024-25 | 32 | 11 |
| 2025-26 | 2 | 0 |
Bishop is the type of player who loves to lead by example. He never hides when Pompey players need to step up and be counted on.
The impressive mentality and his knack for scoring important goals has won the hearts of so many Pompey fans.
It would take a brave man to bet against him firing Pompey’s next penalty into the net, no matter the circumstances in which it arrives.
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