Preston North End 2 Portsmouth 1: Neil Allen's verdict - John Mousinho on warpath as fleeing Blues pulled back in

A clumsy reworking of the famous Godfather Part III line, admittedly, nonetheless the sentiment is sound. The unpalatable truth is the Blues suddenly find themselves dragged back into the relegation scrap.

Certainly a wild-eyed John Mousinho was uncannily reminiscent of Michael Corleone on the rampage at Deepdale, exuding the menace of a man not to be crossed.

A mere seven days earlier, the Blues were basking in a sensational home victory over a Leeds side previously unbeaten since November for a shock outcome which had stunned the Championship.

Now their head coach was on the rampage, publicly tearing into his players, branding himself ‘too nice for too long’, and even declaring a ‘miserable’ fortnight lies in store on the training ground for those not fleeing on international duty.

The ugly aftermath of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat arguably saw the normally unflappable Mousinho at his most angry during his 116-game ongoing reign with the Blues.

His ire centred on his players’ reaction following Colby Bishop’s 84th-minute leveller, culminating with the alarming manner of the Lilywhites’ matchwinner just three minutes later.

The visitors’ strong first-half showing had prompted Paul Heckingbottom to introduce four substitutes at half-time, unquestionably a nod of respect to Pompey’s game plan which had seen them boss the opening 45 minutes.

Regardless of Preston’s much-improved subsequent display, it appeared a 1-1 draw would be a deserved outcome for both foes in front of an eerily subdued home crowd drowned out by the 3,624 travelling faithful.

That was until substitute Sam Greenwood’s ball over the top sparked hesitation between Connor Ogilvie and Nicolas Schmid, allowing Stefan Thordarson to capitalise with a stunning finish from the angle.

It signalled a second defeat in 72 hours for Pompey, while their lead above the relegation zone has ominously been reduced from 10 points to four during that period.

The previous Sunday, the Blues had been gazing at clubs above, targeting loftier Championship positions. Now, they are wearily eying those below, some of which are galloping ever closer like thoroughbreds from Cheltenham.

Yet just as Pompey were never safe from relegation after Leeds, they are not now destined for League One following subsequent successive defeats.

Four points clear with eight games left

All of their rivals would happily snap the proverbial hand off should they be offered the opportunity of residing in 17th spot, four points clear of the drop zone with eight matches remaining.

It remains a position of strength for Mousinho’s men and, while some fans have thrown in the towel, the truth is matters at present aren’t anywhere near as bleak as such people revel in basking in.

Likewise, the head coach’s anger after Preston focused on his team’s display after the 85th minute and how they didn’t initiate a foul in the build-up to the winning goal. He was perfectly satisfied with the performance otherwise.

Indeed, the Blues were extremely comfortable, with Schmid having little to do, while Cohen Bramall struck the bar in the second half. There have been some alarmingly poor away showings this season and, irrespective of the result, this wasn’t one of them.

That’s precisely the reason for Mousinho’s post-match explosion. Saturday represented points lost at the death, they should have taken something back to the south coast. The fact they didn’t is Pompey’s own fault. Clearly improvement is required.

Mousinho had made three changes for Deepdale, eager to freshen up the side following that uninspiring Plymouth defeat, two of which arrived in the back four.

Terry Devlin replaced Zak Swanson at right-back, while Bramall was handed his full debut at left-back, with Connor Ogilvie moving over to the centre of defence in place of the dropped Marlon Pack.

Another blow to Towler, who is becoming better the longer he is overlooked. The likelihood is Alexander Milosevic will also jump ahead of him in the first-team reckoning once declared ready for match minutes, having not played competitively since November.

Meanwhile, Kusini Yengi was granted his first start since November 9, ironically also coming against Preston, and his third outing overall since recovering from knee ligament damage sustained on international duty.

To facilitate that switch, Matt Ritchie’s 12-match consecutive run was ended, with Colby Bishop asked to operate behind the recalled Australian and Adil Aouchiche moved from the number 10 to the right wing.

For the first half, Pompey played with ease as the hosts stood off and inexplicably allowed them time on the ball. Crucially, Mousinho’s men failed to make that advantage count in a game there for the taking.

Once Higginbottom had corrected the errors at half-time, the match tightened up, yet still neither side threatened, other than the impressive Bramall striking the bar/post in the 67th minute with a sweet left-footed shot from 25 yards.

Then, on 76 minutes, a deep ball into the right-hand area of the penalty area was flicked on by successive Preston players and Ryan Porteous slid home at the far post to make it 1-0.

The Blues levelled seven minutes later when Josh Murphy’s left-wing corner was volleyed home by Colby Bishop from inside the box.

However, with three minutes remaining, a ball over the top saw Thordarson get ahead of Ogilvie to collect and, with his second touch, round Schmid before finishing into the empty net.

Greenwood was sent off four minutes into stoppage time following an elbow on Bishop, but there was no coming back a second time as Pompey slipped to defeat - and returned to the relegation dogfight.

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