'We spoke to the medical staff': Portsmouth boss lifts lid on shock defender selection against Norwich
The 22-year-old transfer deadline day arrival has made four appearances for the Blues
John Mousinho has lifted the lid on the shock decision to grant Madiodio Dia his second Pompey start.
And it’s a team selection which centred on preserving Conor Shaughnessy for the crucial Bank Holiday Monday relegation clash with Oxford United.
According to the head coach, the Blues’ medical staff had raised concerns over the Irishman starting two matches in 72 hours, considering his frustrating injury record.
Instead Dia replaced him alongside Regan Poole in the heart of defence for the 1-1 draw at Norwich on Good Friday, having been preferred to Ibane Bowat and Hayden Matthews.
Although Shaughnessy was eventually introduced off the bench for the Senegal defender in the 86th minute at Carrow Road, taking him out of the starting XI was viewed as crucial.
Now the League One title-winning hero is in the frame to start against Oxford at Fratton Park on Monday (12.30pm).
‘We made the decision to take it out of his hands’
Mousinho told The News: ‘We spoke with the medical staff about whether Shocks could play two games in four days. Shocks was ready to do it, but we made the decision to take that out of his hands.
‘We haven’t made a selection decision on Monday yet. But, if we had started Shocks, he wouldn’t have been able to play on Monday.
‘It’s not that he can’t, but, with his injury history over the past two years with us, we were looking at it thinking whenever we’ve brought Shocks back in slowly, it has been really difficult for him to be able to do that anyway.
‘We took the decision to play Jojo. We obviously have Ibane and Hayden there as well to be able to cover it, but we thought this was a chance. We sign players for a reason - and this’s what we wanted to do.
‘Jojo is ahead of the others, that’s why we played him. Ibane was here (as 21st man), there’s a lot of tight calls on a lot of those. We just have to make the decision we can based on training, based on what we’ve seen in games, based on what we thought that Norwich would do.
‘We thought whether they would play either Mohamed Toure or Mathias Kvistgaarden. They have a really direct threat with that pace up top and I thought Jojoe was able to handle that.’
Transfer deadline day arrival from FK Haugesund
Bowat was also present at Carrow Road as 21st man, although Matthews was again overlooked for the match-day squad as he slips further away from the first-team picture.
Dia, who arrived on deadline day from FK Haugesund in a £600,000 deal, has now totalled four appearances for the Blues.
And Mousinho was pleased with how the 22-year-old grew into the Carrow Road challenge as Pelle Mattsson’s 84th-minute own goal earned the visitors a huge point.
‘He grew into the game’
He added: ‘There were a couple of disappointing moments in the first half, maybe through that youth and inexperience Jojo has.
‘This is his second start in English football, he’s not played a huge amount of professional football either, even though he’s 22.
‘He grew into the game. In the second half, he was excellent against a couple of centre-forwards who, at this level, are very, very good.’