John Mousinho now has ‘priority issue’ as Portsmouth work on worst-case scenario
Portsmouth have no doubt had a successful start to their 2025/26 campaign.
John Mousinho has overhauled his squad over the summer, which has resulted in positive performances on the pitch.
As it stands, Pompey sit eighth in the Championship after Portsmouth’s 1-0 victory over Preston.
However, now that the transfer window has closed, there is still work to be done if the South Coast club are to continue their rise up the English pyramid.
This story includes exclusive comment from football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley.
Dan Plumley: New contracts at Portsmouth now a priority
One of the biggest concerns currently at Fratton Park is the number of contracts set to expire.
As it stands, Portsmouth have 10 players set to leave the South Coast club next summer on a free, including Callum Lang.
Speaking to financial expert Dan Plumley, he told Pompey News that this issue is likely to be a “priority” for Portsmouth as they plan for both the best and worst-case scenarios.
He said: “Yes it does and that is sort of your natural squad churn.
“Looking at Portsmouth as an example, it was an extremely successful season in terms of staying up and consolidating in the Championship and that brings additional revenue and a better TV deal versus League One.
“Their finances are a bit more secure, but there is always that risk of dropping back into that league, which you don’t want to do, so you have to have that churn of the squad.
- Portsmouth currently have 10 players with contracts set to expire next summer
- Callum Lang is just one player set to leave
- Mousinho will now look to fix this issue
“We have talked about them not having huge amounts to spend on transfer fees, but also you don’t want too many players stacking up with contracts coming to an end, because that might create you a bit of a bottleneck at the end of the season.
“The working priority moving forward into the winter window and beyond is to look at those players with contracts expiring.
“They will be working on two or three different scenarios, and one of those is being a Championship club, all the way through to a worst-case scenario.
“Fans don’t want to hear you say that, but the reality is that a lot of clubs will plan for a worst-case scenario as well as best-case scenario.”
Portsmouth cannot have a mass exodus next summer
If Portsmouth want to maintain their stay in the Championship and build a potential promotion team, then depth is highly important.
Therefore, if they oversee a mass departure, it will be difficult for Mousinho to replace all of these players with sufficient quality.
Securing many of these stars with new deals is a must over the next two months to ensure their heads are turned in the January window.
Hopefully, multiple new contracts will soon be announced in the coming weeks.
Sign up for the Pompey News WhatsApp channel and turn on notifications to have all the latest, breaking Portsmouth news sent straight to your phone.