Portsmouth boss admits 'frustration' as highly-regarded attacker battles for Fratton Park future
The attacker made his Pompey debut in the January 2025 defeat at Wycombe in the FA Cup
John Mousinho has spoken of Pompey’s ‘frustration’ as Harry Clout battles for his Fratton future.
The 19-year-old, who has made one first-team appearance, is among eight players whose Blues contracts expire at the season’s end.
The promising attacker signed his first professional deal in July, becoming the only member of Sam Hudson’s under-18 squad to be kept following graduation.
Disappointingly, however, Clout has subsequently failed to earn consistent game time during unsuccessful loans at Farnborough, Welling and the Hawks this term.
With the non-league registration window having shut last Thursday, there will be no further opportunities to develop through match minutes elsewhere.
Although Mousinho sees a benefit in now keeping the former Crystal Palace youngster in house as Pompey decide whether to retain him.
‘It would have been the preference to have played a bit more’
The Blues’ head coach told The News: ‘I think Harry would have liked to have played a bit more.
‘There have been various different circumstances around all three of the loans, but it would have been the preference to have played a bit more.
‘It’s frustrating. Naturally in the first year as a pro, you want to at least impact the loan clubs you go out to - and he hasn’t been able to do that.
‘We had been actively trying to look at another loan, but I don't think it’s a terrible option for Harry to be here training and trying to improve.
‘We still get to see him every day, when he’s out on loan we don’t get to see him. There’s pros and cons and there’s merits in both.’
12 appearances over three loans this season
Clout has totalled just 12 matches from his three loan spells this season, although he never made a first-team squad during his brief time with the Hawks.
Another talented youngster, Reuben Swann, was recalled from Westleigh Park last month to help boost Pompey numbers, serving as an unused substitute in the 3-1 win at Millwall.
Also potential free agents at the end of the season are Connor Ogilvie, Marlon Pack, Andre Dozzell, Zak Swanson, Jordan Archer and Toby Steward.
In the meantime for Clout, Mousinho believes the youngster can benefit from training alongside the Blues’ first-team.
He added: ‘We have a decent-enough training group at the moment for the lads that aren’t involved in the first-team.
‘There have been times where we’ve been really thin on the ground and when we’ve had Wednesday sessions or Monday morning sessions where we’re looking to increase the training minutes of those boys who haven’t been involved. Sometimes there haven’t been enough to put on a good training session.
‘At the minute we have decent numbers, we have a lot more back from injury now, and we’ve got the likes of Reuben around and the likes of Clouty around. So we can put on decent sessions and have a proper look at them.’