Portsmouth

Andrew Moon
BBC Radio Solent's Portsmouth commentator

Image source, Getty Images

I've been to managerial press conferences that have been tense. Awkward topics get raised and things can get frosty or hostile quite quickly.

This was not the case with John Mousinho on Wednesday. For the best part of an hour he took questions on his future in a composed, relaxed and thoughtful way.

What did we learn? Mousinho was adamant that at this stage there has been no contact between himself and Bristol City. He'll be meeting Pompey's owners ahead of the final match of the season.

Not for the first time he was clear that he wants to hear the club can move forward on and off the pitch. He praised the owners for their significant investment so far and for sticking with him when times were tough in the past two seasons.

Being a manager is always stressful but being in a relegation battle is all encompassing. The physical, mental and emotional toll of living it for two years cannot be underestimated. It's completely understandable to not want a third year of it.

Three-and-a-half years at the same club is a lifetime in modern football. How much further can Mousinho take Portsmouth? Well that realistically depends on the budget. Mousinho was clear that his requests to the owners will not just be about more resources for his squad. However, all improvements require money. The Eisners' current investment stands at around £60m in nine years.

Mousinho did not imply he was making an ultimatum. At no point did he suggest he was about to simply walk away, quite the contrary.

However, if an offer appears on the table, you would understand Mousinho wanting to hear it. I know, in theory, interested clubs would have to request permission to speak to him, but that isn't actually how football works.

Mousinho has twice turned down the chance to leave Portsmouth for another club in the past. It surprises me there haven't been more offers. Speaking to contacts, it feels outside of Portsmouth his achievements at the club aren't recognised to the level they should be.

Will there be an offer on the table? Mousinho is far from the only name linked to Bristol City. Will it be better than his current position at Portsmouth? Will he get the answers he hopes for from the Pompey owners?

There is a lot of uncertainty. The next few weeks will be interesting.

John Mousinho has done an incredible job at Pompey. Fans will be desperate for his spell to head into a fifth season.

Image source, Opta

With safety already assured, Portsmouth welcome Birmingham City to Fratton Park for the Championship season finale on Saturday (12:30 BST).

Pompey have taken seven points from their past three home games, keeping two clean sheets, and bounced back from a heavy defeat at Coventry to win 3-1 at Stoke on Saturday which made it four wins in five games.

Blues could finish as high as ninth in the table in their first season following promotion from League One and have taken 10 points from their past four games, however they have earned just a point from their past five away games, scoring only twice.

• Portsmouth last hosted Birmingham in the league in March 2012, winning 4-1; Pompey last won back-to-back home league games versus the Blues in September 1992 (3 in a row).

• Birmingham have won four of their past five league games against Portsmouth (L1), more than their previous 14 beforehand (W3 D8 L3).

• Portsmouth haven't won their final match of a league season in any of their past nine seasons in the top two tiers of English football (D3 L6) since a 5-1 win over Middlesbrough in the Premier League in 2003-04 under Harry Redknapp.

• Birmingham have won their final league game in both of the past two seasons, last doing so three times running from 1992-93 to 1994-95.

• Portsmouth have won four of their past five league games (L1) – as many as they'd won in their previous 17 games combined (W4 D5 L8).

Portsmouth hat-trick hero Adrian Segecic said the weekend win at Stoke City was a "massive step in the right direction" for the south coast club.

The 3-1 victory was Pompey's fourth in five matches in a run that has taken them up to 18th and secured a third season in the Championship.

"It was a massive step in the right direction, and a positive way to end the season," he told BBC Radio Solent. "It was the performance we knew we had in us.

"It was a massive win for us. People will say there was no pressure, but no matter what football match you play, it's impossible to say you don't go out there and give 100%.

"Maybe at times this season it was in and out, and it's just about finding the consistency with those performances now. The boys have felt really confident about the way we are now playing".

Pompey's second season back in the second tier has once again been a battle with relegation before finally securing their safety with two games to spare.

Segecic's weekend hat-trick was just the second of his career, and he thanked the fans for their role in the club's survival.

"They've been massive for us the whole season," he said. "When we were down in the dumps and needed someone, they always stepped up and were always there for us.

"They've loved me from the first game I came here, and they've been behind me all season. They deserved the Stoke performance, and look how they sung all game for us".

Portsmouth's campaign has been hampered by injuries to key players, including winger Josh Murphy.

The fit-again 31-year-old supplied the delivery for Segecic's second goal at Stoke, in only his 15th appearance of the season.

"We missed Murph [for] a lot of the season," Segecic said. "We know how vital he was last season for us. It's certainly good to have him back. He boosts the boys a lot, he's such a good character to have around."

Tom Chappell
Portsmouth fan writer from Fournilwrittenalloverit

Image source, Shutterstock

Blazing sunshine, members of the cast and company from both Grease and The Wizard of Oz in fancy dress, an Adrian Segecic hat-trick, three points on our final away trip of the season and John Mousinho fist bumps.

Saturday afternoon in Staffordshire really had it all. Particularly in the second half, there was a real swagger and confidence about Pompey - perhaps expected, given the freedom of expression permitted by our lack of peril in terms of points tally, but a reminder nonetheless of the strength this squad has to deliver a performance like Saturday's.

In spite of John Mousinho's side doubling their away wins this time round compared to last season, Pompey's travelling faithful have been subject to a number of complete no-shows throughout the campaign. Rewarding 3,000-plus fans with a performance of real class to round off nine months up and down the land in such a way was fantastic to see.

There was absolutely no coincidence whatsoever that within minutes of Josh Murphy entering the field, Pompey went back ahead. It was Segecic's day, no-one will doubt that for a second, but Murphy's stardust and exceptional crossing technique went a long way towards winning that game for Pompey.

At 21 years of age, in your debut season in English football, registering double figures for goals in a relegation-battling side for almost the entirety of the campaign is absurdly good.

Segecic's left foot is massively his preference, granted - but the boy is a born goalscorer, unbelievably hard-working and has really gone from strength to strength this season.

All that remains for Pompey is an opportunity to better last season's points total by either one or three points on the final day at Bristol City.

Find more from Tom at the Fournilwrittenalloverit, external YouTube channel

Image source, Getty Images

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho spoke to BBC Radio Solent after Saturday's 3-1 win at Stoke City.

"It was a really impressive performance and a really impressive result, considering the circumstances. I know neither side had anything to play for, but that can always be tricky," he said.

"On the performance as a whole, I was very pleased with [Adrian Segecic] and that's the thing I like to focus on with players.

"He was a constant threat on the right-hand side, and ran in behind very well and looked after the ball brilliantly, which is something we have been really working on and focusing on with him.

"The first finish, with all that time, I was glad to see it go into the back of the net. It was a poacher's finish for the second, and it was a brilliant, typical Adrian Segecic for the third. I'm absolutely delighted for him because he has had an excellent season."

Image source, Opta

Stoke will seek to halt their slide down the Championship table when Portsmouth visit on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Potters occupied the second automatic promotion place in late November but have slipped down to 17th, picking up just three wins in their past 18 games.

The four sides immediately above them remain within three points, however.

Portsmouth's survival was ensured on Tuesday night, despite a 5-1 defeat at Coventry, as Oxford's defeat to Wrexham left the Blues safe with two games remaining.

• Stoke City have won four of their past five league meetings with Portsmouth (L1), just one fewer than their previous 20 prior (W5 D8 L7).

• Portsmouth are winless in seven league visits to Stoke (D2 L5) since a 2-0 triumph in February 1995 under Terry Fenwick.

• Stoke have only won their final home league game in two of the past nine seasons (D2 L5), beating Brentford 1-0 in 2019-20 and Bristol City 4-0 in 2023-24.

• Portsmouth have only won their final away game in one of their past eight second tier seasons (D2 L5), beating Bradford City 5-0 in 2002-03.

• Stoke have lost their past two Championship matches; only once this season have they lost three on the spin, doing so from November to December.

Andrew Moon
BBC Radio Solent's Portsmouth commentator

Image source, Shutterstock

There will be a time to analyse how Portsmouth can move forward as a football club on and off the pitch. How can they aim higher than battling relegation in the Championship?

John Mousinho was clear that investments are required on and off the pitch when chatting live on BBC Radio Solent this week.

However, for a few days at least it is worth pausing and celebrating Championship survival.

It is a stunning achievement given the circumstances. Huge credit needs to go to Mousinho, Richard Hughes and the playing squad.

Why is it such an achievement? It is down to a combination of factors.

Firstly numerous sources have suggested to me that Portsmouth's budget is the 23rd "biggest" in the division, above only Sheffield Wednesday.

It is hard to know exact numbers but that estimate seems reasonable. Wage bill is the biggest predictor of finishing position in the league. Any time you finish higher than your budget placing in a table should be considered good.

That is before you consider all the injury issues Portsmouth have had this season.

If you had asked me to name the squad's five best players last summer the list would have included Josh Murphy, Conor Shaughnessy, Callum Lang and Colby Bishop.

Murphy, Shaughnessy and Lang have spent much of the season injured with Lang sold to Preston North End in January.

Bishop has not performed anywhere near the levels of last season. If you had told me about these issues last summer, I would have predicted relegation for Pompey.

"Second season syndrome" is a bit of a cliche but teams have been much smarter facing Pompey at Fratton Park this season.

The Blues stayed up because of their incredible home record last campaign. Teams would turn up, assume they could outplay a struggling side and invariably get beaten.

This time sides have realised they need to be more cautious and counter attack at speed. Pompey were never going to match last season's home record but they are going to stay up with a modest points haul at Fratton Park.

Surviving for a second season in a row is not particularly exciting. Climbing the league without increasing the budget will be difficult. Fans want to look ahead to next season with hope.

But it is worth pausing and acknowledging what a fine achievement it is that Pompey will be a Championship club again next season.

Tom Chappell
Portsmouth fan writer from Fournilwrittenalloverit

Image source, Getty Images

The duality of football manifested itself perfectly in Portsmouth's loss at Coventry City.

A jubilant away end watched on as Pompey suffered a 5-1 defeat on a Tuesday night, three hours from home, yet still confirmed their mathematical safety, on the same pitch as a team that in turn won the Championship title with a handful of games to spare.

It was always going to be about what happened elsewhere for Pompey last night, namely the result of Oxford United's game against Wrexham.

When news began to spread of the full-time result at the Kassam, despite having witnessed yet another hammering on our travels, it set off scenes in the away end. None of us had ever been happier with a 5-1 loss away from home.

It points to the bigger picture that Pompey have had so many of these results in them this season, and while confirmation of divisional status is a welcome relief -and, somewhat, an achievement in itself - there is absolutely nowhere to hide for conceding goals against the title winners in the way we did.

The reason it is only 'somewhat' of an achievement is down mainly to two things, although some might not even consider it an achievement at all - more a failure of a season, which would, in turn, have been labelled a catastrophic failure had we gone down.

The first is that this is probably the easiest season you could have wished for to stay up in the Championship for a very long time.

Points deductions for two, and maybe even three teams this campaign, have meant points have been easier to come by against some of the sides down there, albeit also meaning the tally to stay up is slightly and unusually higher.

The second is that Pompey's season this year could have been about so much more than just surviving.

For a number of intrinsic reasons, what this campaign appeared to be after the first international break in September last year, and what it has turned out to be, are remarkably contrasting.

John Mousinho is a miracle worker. He has time and again been sent into battle on the good ship Pompey rudderless and with little to no ammunition, and has somehow emerged from the other side victorious.

There are only so many seasons in which you get away with this, and only so many times you can ride your luck as we have done this year.

Over the summer, the football club must, and I'm sure it will, have a number of sensible, rational conversations about where and what it wants to be.

Could you just imagine what a manager as talented as Mousinho could achieve with the appropriate tools at his disposal?

There is no endless war chest required and that is not what anyone is reasonably asking for.

For the time being, enough investment to prevent yearly scuffles with the bottom end of the Championship, and more regular opportunities to look up more than we look down, would suffice.

Find more from Tom at the Fournilwrittenalloverit, external YouTube channel

We asked what you thought of Portsmouth's Championship survival with two games to spare and what is needed for Pompey to avoid another relegation scrap next season.

Here are some of your responses:

Matt: Keeping John Mousinho is a must, he has a good relationship with fans and players. However, we need a big summer signing or two with a striker being a must, as this is where we have failed this season.

Richard: Championship survival achieved 'just' often hides some uncomfortable truths: performance levels, squad depth, injuries, goals scored, and how often results went our way rather than being imposed by us. If two of the three teams below us were docked points, that's a warning signal, not a badge of progress. The big summer issue is backing the manager properly.

Richard H: A huge congratulations to John, the team and, of course, the fans. Pompey have massively overachieved bearing in mind our player budget. With the direction football finances are going I remain grateful that our club is relatively secure, even if we have another fight to stay in the Championship ahead of us next season.

Ian: Was the most deflating way to get over the line but also probably sums up our season. Somehow we found a way and I think this is a greater achievement than last year. Credit to Mousinho and Jon Harley - they are working minor miracles. I really hope they're given more than longshot academy prospects, loans and League One journeyman to build a team from next season. We need to progress on the pitch this summer or it will be more of the same.

Paul: Great team on their day, but they are not consistent. Sometimes they have to play a different sort of game, particularly against top of the table teams. They had better improve for next season else third time won't be so lucky.

Chris: Important that the club continues to invest on and off the pitch, and it will be interesting to see if Anders, Breck and Eric have plans to inject additional funds. The Eisners are rightly focused on sustainability, and the club needs to generate greater income to support this ambition. Fundamentally though, it is vital that the playing budget and recruitment strategy are rewritten to allow us to compete in what will be a very competitive league once again next season.

Richard T: I think it's all about getting the right players in, with the mixture of enhancing the group with their character, commitment, and the courage to play for a shirt that can be weighed down with certain expectations. Do we need to increase the budget? Probably. But please remember back to where overspending nearly cost us the club we all love. We don't want to go back there again, EVER.

Alan: We need to sign quality rather than quantity players who won't keep being injured or unfit after 20 minutes, ie more Adams and Alli rather than Blair and Bianchi. Give young keeper Toby Steward his chance and hang on to our best current team.

Harry: I would say he [Mousinho] has done a good job given the circumstances. A shoestring budget [or the Championship] and the teams that have come up from League One with crazy financial backing, to be where we are is brilliant. Hopefully, with a bit more financial backing next year we can push up the table, bring in some better quality and squad depth.

"Did I say two weeks ago they had a 35% chance of staying up? Don't listen to me...

"You're not going to smile too widely about the game last night, but you should be smiling for the 44 games that got the job done.

"In a period of 11 days Pompey have gone from dropping into the relegation zone until that 97th-minute winner at Middlesbrough to being safe with two games to go."

BBC Radio Solent's Chris Wise and Andy Moon are joined by Jordan Cross of the Portsmouth News to reflect on Pompey securing Championship survival, despite a 5-1 hammering at Coventry, ask how big an achievement is it, and your questions are answered in Moon's Musings.

Listen to the latest episode of Who Needs Mourinho on BBC Sounds

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Never in doubt, eh Pompey fans?

OK, perhaps there was some doubt, particularly after the 6-1 humbling at QPR on 21 March, but a run of 11 points from five unbeaten games after that ensured Portsmouth will line up for a third Championship season in August.

Safety may have been assured on a night when the Blues went down 5-1 at Champions Coventry, but the job was all but done by then, right?

So how are you feeling? Where do you go from here? What will it take to avoid a third consecutive relegation dogfight in 2026-27? Where do you think you need reinforcements? Can you keep hold of John Mousinho who has done such a good job at Fratton Park?

Click here to have your say.

Andrew Moon
BBC Radio Solent's Portsmouth commentator

Image source, Shutterstock

It's not very often fans cheer at the end of a 5-1 defeat, or strictly speaking about two minutes before the end when Oxford's result was confirmed, but the Pompey fans knew the job was done and Championship survival was ensured.

This was a game too far for Portsmouth, and Coventry were just too good.

A huge amount of physical and emotional energy was spent last week, the nine-point return put them on the brink. Wrexham finished the job for them on Tuesday night.

It's a funny old game. If you told anyone after the 6-1 drubbing at QPR on 21 March that Pompey would have been safe with two games to go they would have thought you were crazy.

You might have been, but you'd have been right.

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho spoke to BBC Radio Solent after their 5-1 defeat at Championship title-winners Coventry.

(On securing Championship survival) "It feels really strange at the moment. It was such a brutal (last) 45 minutes," he said.

"We'd left everything on the pitch over the past couple of weeks and this was one too far.

"I'm absolutely delighted we've stayed up. It's a strange set of circumstances, it does feel a bit weird. But if you had offered me this from any point from October or November onwards I'd have snapped your hand off.

"To stay up with two games to go is a monumental achievement.

"They're the best team in the league by some way. They blew us away in the second half. We couldn't get near them. Thankfully we're not playing them next year."

Tom Chappell
Portsmouth fan writer from Fournilwrittenalloverit

Image source, Shutterstock

Albeit not beyond mathematical doubt, with the 50-point mark smashed through on Saturday, three wins in a row in the space of seven days and now five games unbeaten, you'd be forgiven for considering Portsmouth a Championship side for at least another season.

Pompey's nine-point week couldn't have come at a better time.

An explosion of form from absolutely nowhere means that all of a sudden, beating last season's 54-point tally appears plausible. That would've felt absurd just a few weeks ago.

Inside 15 minutes, with both Keshi Anderson and Terry Devlin withdrawn through injury in the 1-0 win over Leicester, two ideal candidates to grab the game by the scruff of the neck were no longer available.

This, twinned with a bitty and stop-start affair, paved the way for a "one moment that wins it" match. And up stepped Ibane Bowat.

Both Regan Poole and Nico Schmid contributed two match-defining blocks, and while Pompey's performance didn't have the splendour of last Tuesday night against Ipswich, both results count for the same number of points - and register equally as significant in terms of survival for John Mousinho's side.

The pressure abates somewhat for Pompey fans, with the expectant champions in waiting, Coventry City, next up. That game would've had an entirely different complexion if Saturday hadn't gone our way.

With hindsight, the international break following the QPR game may well have saved Pompey's season.

A point or two and we could now be over the line with a handful of games to spare.

Find more from Tom at the Fournilwrittenalloverit, external YouTube channel

Image source, Opta

After securing their first promotion to the top-flight in 59 years, Coventry City will aim to seal the Championship title by beating Portsmouth at the CBS Arena on Tuesday night (19:45 BST).

Despite drawing their past three games, the Sky Blues are 10 points clear of second-placed Ipswich following Sunday's 2-2 draw between Town and Middlesbrough, with the Tractor Boys having four games remaining.

Pompey head north on the back of three straight wins, and clean sheets, against Boro, Ipswich and Leicester, which have lifted them seven points clear of the relegation zone with three games to play.

John Mousinho's side would be safe, even with a defeat, should Oxford United lose at home to Wrexham, also on Tuesday night.

• Coventry have won three of their past four league games against Portsmouth (L1), and are looking to complete the double over them for the first time since 2010-11.

• Portsmouth have failed to score in six of their past nine away league games against Coventry, though they've avoided defeat each time they've scored in that run (W2 D1).

• Coventry failed to score in their last home league game against Sheffield Wednesday (0-0); not since November 2023 have the Sky Blues gone successive league matches on home soil without a goal.

• Portsmouth have recorded four wins across their past 10 away league games (D3 L3), as many as in their previous 34 away league games since the start of last season (D9 L21).

• Coventry's Brandon Thomas-Asante has scored in six of his past seven home league starts (6 goals), only netting more home goals for a single club in an English league season in 2023-24 (8 with West Brom).