Exclusive:'It has evolved': John Mousinho details his role in Portsmouth transfers - and why he now has a greater say

John Mousinho insists he has more say in Pompey’s transfer dealings than ever before.

And the head coach is adamant that during his three-and-a-half years on the south coast, the Blues have never signed a player against his wishes.

Since his January 2023 arrival, Mousinho has driven Pompey’s impressive transformation from a struggling League One side to becoming established in the Championship.

The 40-year-old has embraced a modern-thinking club infrastructure spearheaded by sporting director Rich Hughes, who also oversees transfer dealings with head of recruitment Brad Wall.

As head coach, Mousinho has been relieved of conventional managerial responsibilities in terms of player recruitment, a change of remit he is entirely comfortable with.

Nonetheless, he admits his Fratton Park role has evolved during his ongoing tenure, with greater involvement in identifying potential Pompey signings.

‘If there was a player I wanted, we would sign him’

Mousinho told The News: ‘My role has probably evolved a bit. When I first came into the football club, we were in the midst of the January 2023 window.

‘It was always really clear when I first took the job about what that would look like - i.e. if there was a player I wanted, we would sign him. If there was a player I didn’t want, I wouldn’t sign him.

‘As we’ve gone over the years, I’ve probably had more involvement than I did in the initial transfer windows. My role has slightly changed, not massively, we still operate off the same principles in terms of the profile of players we want to go after.

‘The recruitment team then scours every possible market for that profile. It comes down to a long list and it will eventually become a short list, which is when I really get myself involved, maybe with four or five players in one position. Then I really dig into it off the back of that.

‘Matt Macey was here on my first day, then we signed Paddy Lane and Di’Shon Bernard - and I had the final say on those players.

‘Naturally, as you stay at the football club for a period of time, there is maybe a bit more involvement, becoming a lot more comfortable, and I have the last say on transfers.

‘I’m not in a position to be a recruiter, that and being a head coach are completely different skills and completely different things. I could spend all my time recruiting and watching every single league, then you’d have a really poor team on the weekend.

‘They are two separate things. So, in the modern game, where you are no longer recruiting from one country and just a couple of leagues, you need that expertise behind you.

‘We also have the balance of the football club. There has never been a signing we’ve made that I’ve said “No, I don’t want that player” - and the player has been signed. It has never ever happened.

‘There has never been a case where I’ve said I really want this player and the club have said no. There have been times when we haven’t been able to get the player, but that’s completely different.’

Inevitably, some managers would be uncomfortable working within a framework consisting of a sporting director driving recruitment, yet Mousinho accepts it’s a necessity of the modern game.

What’s more, the head coach reveals he is handed a shortlist of 3-4 names every time a position is identified to be strengthened - and, crucially, he also retains the final say.

Certainly Mousinho believes separating the long recruitment process from head coach duties is an effective use of time and resources.

‘That’s not the way football works, unfortunately’

He added: ‘I would love to know every single player in the world and everything about those players, but it can’t happen, that’s not the way that football works, unfortunately. So we have the recruitment team.

‘The ideal thing for me - just from a time perspective - is I have 3-4 potential players in one position that I can probably dig into and decide within that list who I think is best. I think that’s the only way it can work.

‘Speak to our recruitment department and they know far more about players than me, they know the leagues, they know everything which is going on in Europe.

‘That has to be the way it is, otherwise you lose complete focus on the coaching aspect, working with players every day, dealing with the media.

‘All those sorts of things are time consuming for the right reasons - that’s what the head coach needs to be doing.’

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