'We haven't had that all season': Portsmouth boss hails Gustavo Caballero's X-factor - and adding a new dimension
The Santos loanee made his second Blues appearance at The Valley following his deadline day arrival
John Mousinho reflected on a tantalising first Pompey start for Gustavo Caballero and admitted: We haven’t had that all season.
The Paraguayan winger was handed his Blues full debut at Charlton on Tuesday night, operating on the right wing in place of Adrian Segecic.
Having not even been used off the bench against Sheffield United, it represented an intriguing team selection amid the ongoing injury crisis - and Mousinho wasn’t disappointed with the loanee’s response in the 3-1 success.
Showing a directness and willingness to drive up the pitch and press, Caballero also created the Blues’ second goal when his right-wing cross was handled by Amari’i Bell in the 35th minute, with Colby Bishop converting the penalty.
And while the Santos loanee was substituted in the 63rd minute, Mousinho believes the winger offered attacking attributes Pompey have lacked this season.
‘There’s plenty more to come from him’
He told The News: ‘I really liked lots of what I saw there with Gus. He showed some real positivity considering it was his first start, chucking him into such a difficult hostile atmosphere.
‘To be fair to Gus, he’s used to it, he’s played in Paraguay, he’s played in Brazil, where football is everything. So coming over here, he’s slotted in really well. He showed some really bright sparks and there’s plenty more to come from him.
‘He didn’t play on Saturday, but we obviously trust him, we trust all of the players, it’s just in certain moments we turn to certain players and, off the back of last night Gus, will get into it.
‘At Charlton he was a threat in terms of that outlet on the right-hand side, he worked really hard, kept himself going with the press.
‘He hasn’t played since the back end of January. He’s played 45 minutes here and 45 minutes there for Santos, but he wasn’t a regular starter, and he provided that threat for us going forward.
‘He set up the second goal, just being direct on crossing the ball, it’s something on the right-hand side we haven’t had, that directness. So I’m really happy with that.’
Overlooked for Sheffield United duty
Some supporters had questioned why Caballero wasn’t used off the bench in Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Sheffield United, particularly considering the Blues’ wastefulness in front of goal.
On that occasion, Jacob Brown replaced an injured Adrian Segecic on the right in the 77th minute, with the Paraguayan instead denied his Fratton Park debut.
However, with Segecic forced to drop to the bench with a dead leg at The Valley on Tuesday night, Caballero was one of two starting XI changes, along with Marlon Pack.
And Mousinho is convinced not employing the 24-year-old against the Blades last weekend was the right thing to do considering the circumstances.
‘It was the right thing to do’
He added: ‘I just think that with the pace of the game, sometimes coming off the bench is difficult.
‘If it’s your home debut and that atmosphere at Fratton Park against a side like Sheffield United with the game in full flow, I didn’t think it was the right thing. I do think it’s different when you start a game.
‘My experience as a player is that you can get yourself into a game after 5, 10, 15 minutes, you get used to your surroundings.
‘We had a lot longer on Sunday and Monday to talk Gus through what we expected from him. Whereas Saturday we wouldn’t have had that chance, it would have been 15 seconds of madness and probably an issue with translation on the bench.
‘So we thought it was the right thing to do - and he got his role against Charlton and executed it well.’