Exclusive:'I'd be surprised': Portsmouth boss' transfer window admission over Wrexham target Terry Devlin
The Northern Ireland international has made 101 appearances since joining the Blues in the summer of 2023
John Mousinho has spoken of his ‘surprise’ that Terry Devlin has to still attract transfer window interest this summer.
Yet he is adamant Pompey are under no pressure from owners Tornante to cash in on the popular right-back.
Having rejected a £2m bid from Wrexham for the Northern Ireland international in January, the Blues were braced for more admirers to come forward in the current window, including the return of the Red Dragons.
Certainly Mousinho anticipates interest to escalate in Devlin as the summer progresses and clubs ramp up their recruitment drive.
However, like the Callum Lang saga, he insists any potential departure will entirely be on the Blues’ terms.
‘Nothing has panned out at the moment’
Pompey’s head coach told The News: ‘I would be surprised if there’s no interest in Terry, but you never know. Nothing has panned out at the moment, although it is still very, very early.
‘He had such a good season, turned himself into a starter for Northern Ireland, scored goals from that position, swept up with the end-of-season awards and was fully, fully deserving. I thought there would be a bit of external interest.
‘There's no pressure on us to sell, we don’t need to sell. When those sorts of questions come up there are a lot of factors, but mainly it’s about what the player wants to do.
‘Terry is really happy here, Terry is fully committed, we’ve said let's just stay open and honest about what happens elsewhere. We have seen in the past that, if a player really wants to go, it’s very difficult to keep him should the offer be there and the offer is right.
‘At absolutely no point of my time at this football club have we received an offer and the board have said we must sell the player for financial reasons. That won’t happen with Terry.
‘It will be more about what Terry wants to do and then, at that point, we will make that decision based on what we think is financially sensible for the football club. We won't be strong-armed into anything.’
Ultimately, considering the player’s strong stance, Pompey were happy with the outcome, pocketing a sizeable profit on the attacker after two Fratton Park seasons.
And Mousinho has made it clear that any suitors for Devlin would need to reach the club’s valuation, likely to be in excess of the £2m they rejected from Wrexham six months ago.
‘We are not going to shift’
He added: ‘It’s very, very similar to what happened in January with Callum Lang. We were satisfied as a football club that we got the right price for the player and the player wanted to go - so we made the decision collectively.
‘I think Terry deserves the praise, he deserves the limelight - and it’s just about having an honest conversation with him.
‘Maybe for our valuation of the player there might be a limited number of clubs who want to spend that on a right-back - and we’re not going to shift from what we think Terry is worth’.
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