John Mousinho makes 'unlucky' admission over Portsmouth summer signing
Portsmouth claimed a crucial 3-1 home win against Championship rivals Millwall on Saturday afternoon.
Pompey manager John Mousinho is hoping one of his summer signings can kick-start his Fratton Park career on the back of an impressive showing in Saturday’s vital home win against Championship rivals Millwall.
Goals from Zak Swanson, and OG and Jordan Williams were enough to help Mousinho’s men secure all three points against the promotion-chasing Lions in front of a crowd of over 20,000 at Pompey’s famous old home. Although it was another tense and nervy afternoon, several men in blue impressed throughout the game as their side boosted their hopes of moving away from the relegation zone ahead of a hectic period between now and the turn of the year.
However, Mousinho singled out summer signing Márk Kosznovszky for special praise after he produced an eye-catching display in what was only his third league start of the season. The former Hungary Under-21 international joined Pompey from MTK Budapest during the summer transfer window but has made a slow start to his time at Fratton Park.
The midfielder gave a sign of what he could offer on a regular basis, however, during Saturday’s win as he showed plenty of composure and discipline after a slightly shaky start to the game.
Mousinho revealed his delight over the player’s performance and admitted Kosznovszky has been unlucky not to have been handed more game time during the opening months of his time with the club.
Mousinho: He’s kept his head down
Speaking after the win, the Blues head coach told The News: ‘I think he’s been so unlucky to not play more games this year and when he’s played he has played out of position.
‘It’s trying to find the right balance for Mark and getting him into the side, getting him used to English football and finding the right position for him as well. He’s had some stiff competition because we’ve played Dozza (Andre Dozzell) there for the majority of the season so far.
‘I was really pleased for Mark, he found himself out of the squad two and a half weeks ago for the Wrexham game but he’s kept his head down.
‘The work-rate is always there, it’s just about making sure he affects games and keeps affecting games. He always does his job - but today (Saturday)I thought he affected the game, I thought he was great.’
Kosznovszky will hopes he keeps his place in Pompey’s central midfield when they travel to Sheffield United on Wednesday night. He took the place of Luke Le Roux in the Blues’ engine room against Millwall, with hisa South African team-mate not included in Saturday’s match-day squad.