John Mousinho pinpoints major change he’s made ahead of Ipswich trip
Portsmouth’s horrific away form was the main reason they spent most of last season in a relegation dogfight.
Only relegated Plymouth Argyle picked up fewer points on the road than Portsmouth last season in the Championship. Pompey won three of their 23 games, drawing five and losing 15 times.
John Mousinho knew he needed to improve Portsmouth’s away form this season, and his team have started well away from Fratton Park.
Now, ahead of Portsmouth’s latest away match at Ipswich, Mousinho has identified the main factor behind his team’s improvement.
John Mousinho says that Portsmouth have more of an ‘identity’ off the ball
Pompey kicked off the 2024/25 season with a 1-0 win away at Oxford. Since then, they have picked up well-earned draws against West Bromwich Albion and Southampton.
They are now unbeaten in their last five away matches, including their final two of last season.
Portsmouth travel to Ipswich Town on Saturday for what could be one of the tougher away matches of their season.
Ahead of the match, Mousinho told the BBC what he felt was a key factor behind their improvement.
“We tried to improve the away form and towards the back end of last season we did improve it, just not in terms of results but also with performances,” Mousinho told BBC Radio Solent.
“It wasn’t good enough, we still wanted to win but we never lost by more than a goal but then managed to turn the corner with a positive result at Norwich (5-3 win) and a point at Sheffield Wednesday.”
Reflecting on Pompey’s unbeaten run on the road, Mousinho added: “It’s been a lot more positive at the start of this season with a couple of draws and a win at Oxford.
“We’ve just tried to be more solid and we’ve got a defined identity out of possession which we didn’t have at the start of last year so we want to try to build on that.”
Portsmouth could struggle defensively without Conor Shaughnessy
The return of Conor Shaughnessy to the Portsmouth defence has previously been identified as a big reason why Portsmouth had improved on the road.
Shaughnessy didn’t play one game alongside Regan Poole last season, as both players dealt with serious injury problems.
They have started every game together this season, and Pompey looked much stronger defensively as a result.
Particularly away from home, where the opponents have laid siege to Portsmouth’s goal late in the game, these two have stood strong and dealt with everything thrown at them.
| Date | Result |
| 18 April 2025 | Norwich 3 Portsmouth 5 |
| 26 April 2025 | Sheffield Wednesday 1 Portsmouth 1 |
| 9 August 2025 | Oxford United 0 Portsmouth 1 |
| 23 August 2025 | West Bromwich Albion 1 Portsmouth 1 |
| 14 September 2025 | Southampton 0 Portsmouth 0 |
Shaughnessy tore his hamstring in Portsmouth’s last game against Sheffield Wednesday, so it could be a challenge for Portsmouth to maintain that defensive solidarity without him.
Josh Knight looks set to replace him at centre-half. Mousinho will be hoping he can develop a quick understanding with Poole, so his team can continue their impressive form on the road.
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