‘Made that position his own’: John Mousinho lauds revolutionised Portsmouth favourite after answering SOS
Zak Swanson has amassed 29 Championship appearances for Pompey this season.
John Mousinho now views Zak Swanson as an out-and-out left-back in his Pompey side.
And the head coach has sung the 25-year-old’s praises after he answered the Blues’ SOS in November amid injuries to both Connor Ogilvie and Jacob Farrell.
It’s been an outstanding campaign at Fratton Park for the ex-Arsenal talent, who has cemented himself as a regular fixture in Mousinho’s Championship armoury.
Swanson has featured 31 times for the Blues in all competitions this term, of which 26 have come from the starting XI.
After a serious knee injury to Ogilvie against Wrexham in November and Farrell’s ongoing absence due to a groin issue, the Blues boss went in search of alternate avenues to fill the gaping void left by the 30-year-old at left-back.
The 2022 arrival was the man given the nod by the head coach to cover over Jordan Williams - and it’s a decision which Mousinho hasn’t looked back on.
Since Swanson’s introduction on the left, he’s featured in 22 of Pompey’s previous 23 matches, with his sole absence coming because of illness against Derby County in December.
Although Ogilvie returned to the fold in January, the ex-Spurs man has been operating at the heart of defence in Conor Shaughnessy’s absence. Despite the Irishman’s impending return from a quad injury this weekend, Mousinho has no plans on changing his backline at present.
Pompey boss lauds favourite after answering SOS
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And the head coach is adamant Swanson’s new left-back role is a position he’s now made his own.
The Blues boss told BBC Radio Solent this week: ‘I looked at it when Connor Ogilvie first got injured and Jacob Farrell wasn’t fit as well when we had that double injury back in October.
‘I didn’t know how we’d fare without a left-back but I think we’ve couped really well.
‘Swanny (Zak Swanson), for all intents and purposes probably I’d consider as a left-back now.
‘Testament to the lads that have come in and done that job and testament to how well they’ve done.
‘It wouldn’t have been the first position I would have had him either.
‘I see Zak providing a little bit of cover at left-back, we’d always thought he had the ability to play in the middle of the park but primarily a right-back. That’s where he’s played pretty much his entire career.
‘We look at it now and think he’s done so well there and made that position his own.
‘He’s managed to take all the positives of being a right-footer on the left and really used that to his advantage.’
Swanson has amassed 107 appearances for Pompey during his three-and-a-half-year stay on the south coast following his arrival under Danny Cowley in 2022.
Despite injury and availability issues affecting his first two campaigns at Fratton Park, the full-back has revolutionised himself as an established Championship performer, with his stock now firmly on the rise.