‘Got all the credentials’: Exciting claim made over Portsmouth boss’ future amid impressive Championship ranking
John Mousinho has led Pompey to the League One title and Championship survival in his two full seasons in the Fratton Park hot seat.
John Mousinho has the credentials to manage at the top level of English football.
That’s the clear verdict of Second Tier Podcast co-host Justin Peach, who believes the Pompey boss is one of the most up-and-coming head coaches in the EFL.
After leading the Blues to the League One title during the 2023-24 campaign, he followed his second full season in management with Championship survival.
There were a number of injuries to key players to contend with as well, with Colby Bishop, Callum Lang, Connor Shaughnessy, Jacob Farrell and others missing large parts of the campaign.
However, Mousinho was able to guide his troops to an impressive 16th-placed finish on their return to the second tier after a 12-year hiatus.
And the Blues boss’ tactical flexibility, among other standout traits, have been heavily praised by the Second Tier Podcast, who have ranked the Pompey chief as the sixth best manager currently operating in the division.
Pompey boss ranked among Championship’s best
Peach said: ‘His tactical flexibility, fluid teams, exceeding expectations, growing individuals. I think he’s got all the credentials to be a top level coach and a top level manager.
‘He is still very young and as well as that, you’ve got to consider Pompey and their position and their budget coming from League One. We talk a lot about the gap between the Premier League and the Championship growing but that’s also the case with the Championship and League One.
‘Now, all the League One teams promoted in the 2023-24 season stayed up last season. But Portsmouth really did stay up, if you can stay up really good, they stayed up really good.
They were bottom of the Championship in November and come the end of the season it was a very comfortable finish away from danger. They achieved their goal.
‘In addition to that, they were one of the hardest done by injuries. They had to shuffle their defence around a lot, they were without Colby Bishop for long periods, Callum Lang as well - two very important attacking players.
‘Josh Murphy is another fine example of what Mousinho can do with individuals because he had one of the best seasons of his career. There’s a lot of ticks in the box, a lot of green flags with John Mousinho and it’s very hard to find any faults right now.
‘Keeping Portsmouth in the Championship in the current climate is a big achievement. They’re a big club but you’ve got to look at the budget and recruitment.
‘They’re not spending mountains of cash and Mousinho has worked with what he’s got. The injury issues are massive. How often did he have to shuffle his defence? Marlon Pack was playing long periods at centre-back. John Mousinho has a very high ceiling but he can also deliver in the here and now, which is important.’
John Mousinho’s coaching ability hailed
Josh Murphy was one of the standout individuals for Pompey in the Championship last term, where he amassed an impressive 21 goal contributions in 42 appearances.
And Peaches’ co-host Justin Dilks believes Mousinho’s coaching ability was the key behind the winger’s outstanding campaign, along with fellow key performers.
He said: ‘It’s been a very short managerial career so far for Mousinho but what he’s done has been remarkable. He was the man who finally got Portsmouth out of League One. It took them seven years and he was the one who finally did it and then last season he managed to keep them up very comfortably in the end.
‘Pompey had an awful start in terms of the fixture schedule but he managed to steer that ship into steady waters and they did it by playing some entertaining football along the way.
The way he’s turned careers around, most notably Josh Murphy has been sublime, Callum Lang, Andre Dozzell both mentioned in that regard too.
‘The main thing is he kept Portsmouth up with a bottom three budget. It’s very impressive considering it was only his second full season in management.
‘That’s how short his managerial career has been and I completely forgot about the number of injuries they had last season. Still only 39, I think this is a manager with a very bright future.’