Portsmouth boss’ no-nonsense demand as patience wears thin with injury-hit duo
The Australian hopeful has played one league game in 18 months, with the Liverpool arrival also facing fitness woes. The message from John Mousinho is now abundantly clear.
John Mousinho has demanded his injury-ravaged hopefuls deliver a clear run of fitness if they are to make the grade at Pompey.
The Blues boss insisted Jacob Farrell needs a bank of availability to ‘boost confidence’ he can be robust enough for English football.
Staying fit will ‘ultimately boost confidence’ in Farrell for Mousinho
And Mousinho aired a similar verdict over Harvey Blair, after returning to the fray against Swansea City following his latest comeback from a Fratton stay hindered by fitness issues.
The Pompey head coach’s patience appears to be wearing thin over first-team options he is unable to pick for extended periods, as his aims to get his side’s Championship season firing.
Farrell is recovering from a groin issue in a Fratton stay also impacted by a knee injury, with Mousinho refusing to put a timescale on when the 23-year-old will be available as result.
The Central Coast Mariners arrival was handed a four-year deal when signing in the summer of last year, but has featured just once in the league in that time with a single Carabao Cup outing this term. Mousinho feels it’s been impossible to judge Farrell as a result, while Blair has also fought recurring injury issues.
The Liverpool signing has dealt with hamstring, illness and knee meniscus tear issues in his career, but branded the grade four hamstring tear suffered against Hull City in May the worst of his life. He came back this term but then suffered more problems in October, before making his latest comeback at Swansea City on Tuesday night.
Mousinho has continually shown patience and talked up the potential of both players, but now the message is becoming more abrupt to both.
Liverpool signing ‘has to stay fit, so he’s available to use’
He said: ‘There’s nothing the lads can do with a lot of the injuries, apart from maybe looking at lifestyle changes and really looking at the way they approach their bodies and everything they do off the pitch.
‘It’s as simple as that (they need to stay fit), really.
‘You’ve got someone like Jacob who’s played one game in 18 months. So when he gets back, he just needs to stay fit.
‘With Harvey he’s been here in fits and starts and played at Swansea. He just has to stay fit, so he’s available for us to use him.
‘No, it’s impossible for Jacob (to show what he can do) if you’re injured for that long, I suppose. We’ll see when we see, right? The proof will be in the pudding. If he strings together a run of training and is available for games, that will ultimately boost my confidence in him.
‘It’s the same with Harv, we’ve seen it with him in little blocks - but recent history with Harv shows where he is at the moment.
‘He played the last two games of last season. I don’t think there is anything he could’ve done about that injury, but when he was out he came back for two games and then was out again. He’s now back for one game, so we need to stay on top of him and keep him fit.’
With Blair currency available for selection, Farrell joins Conor Shaughnessy (hamstring), Thomas Waddingham (quad) and Connor Ogilvie (knee) as the Pompey quartet in the treatment room.