Portsmouth boss throws down gauntlet to rampant ex-Cardiff man who revelled in silencing Swansea boo-boys
Josh Murphy returned to Wales to revel in silencing criticism from gloating Swansea supporters.
And John Mousinho is convinced the mercurial winger can escalate his game even further as his scoring streak continues.
Murphy endured a difficult four years at Cardiff following a largely unsuccessful £11m move from Norwich, totalling 14 goals in 99 outings.
It’s no wonder he became the subject of Swans fans’ comments during Saturday’s Pompey visit - and didn’t he relish conjuring up a man-of-the-match display against them in the 2-2 draw.
Indeed, the 29-year-old even cupped his ears and celebrated in front of them after netting on the stroke of half-time to put the Blues 2-0 up.
And following a third goal in four matches, Mousinho is urging Murphy to maintain the scintillating performance levels which left Swansea fans cursing.
He told The News: ‘I didn’t watch Josh at Cardiff, I played with him at Oxford and watched him last season - and I know he has the capability to do that and a lot more, to be honest.
‘I think we can keep demanding much more of Josh. His last four games in a Pompey shirt have been really, really good and he’s got to keep going with that and keep putting in those levels of performance.
‘I have every faith he’s going to be able to do it because he’s in brilliant form at the minute and has got himself fit. He must keep himself at it and keep scoring.
‘When you break it down, we’ve got Josh in the side to score and to assist, and he did exactly that against Swansea on Saturday. He was a constant threat.
‘As we went deeper and deeper in the second half, it became a lot more difficult for any of our forward players to properly affect the game.
‘But certainly I am really, really pleased with large parts of Josh’s performance - and he knows he can keep getting better and keep improving.’
Murphy had laid on Pompey’s 25th-minute opener after cleverly turning Josh Key and then producing a left-footed cross which was prodded home by Matt Ritchie.
Then, on 45 minutes, he produced a classy controlled volley from a tight angle to double their lead - although Swansea fought back to claim a 2-2 draw.
Mousinho added: ‘Josh is a player that has had plenty of recognition at higher levels, he has played in the Premier League.
‘He has to keep pushing himself to try to get as high as he possibly can for the rest of his career.’