'A nice moment': Portsmouth boss on the only bright spot from FA Cup embarrassment at Wycombe

In terms of solely the 2-0 defeat at Wycombe, certainly Pompey’s boss was only enthused about the first-team entrance of Harry Clout, with the 18-year-old having endured a patient wait.

The left winger burst onto the scene in a friendly at the Hawks in July and subsequently was called onto the Blues bench four times in the Championship, without being used, while had two months out injured.

However, he was finally granted a long-awaited bow in the dismal FA Cup elimination, having been introduced for the final 14 minutes.

It was the first time an Academy player had been handed a Pompey debut in 13 months - when Sam Folarin came off the bench in the EFL Trophy at Leyton Orient in November 2023.

And Mousinho praised the second-year scholar’s impact after replacing Paddy Lane at Adams Park.

He told The News: ‘There were just two nice moments on Friday. Isaac signing and Harry coming on.

‘We had the three Academy lads on the bench, and at 2-0, I thought it was worth protecting Paddy and I actually thought Harry could come in and make an impact. I thought he did quite well in his 14-minute spell.

‘I have spoken at length about Harry and his journey into the first-team. It started with really positive performances at the back end of last year, particularly in the Youth Alliance Cup final against Preston (April 2024).

‘He’s had unfortunate injuries this year when he’s gone out on loan to Bognor, but he’s made his way back into the fold in the Academy.

‘I thought he was impressive against Leeds in the FA Cup third round tie and worked his way into the side against Wycombe.’

Tayo Singerr and Michael Ani were the other Academy players named on the bench for a much-changed Blues at Wycombe on Friday night.

Singerr is the under-18s’ leading scorer, while Ani is a right-back who previously was named among the substitutes for the 4-1 victory over Coventry last month.

The most recent existing Academy player to feature for Pompey was Koby Mottoh, who made four appearances last season, all arriving in the cup competitions - but none after December 2023.

He was subsequently released and snapped up by Bournemouth’s under-21s following a successful trial, where he is featuring regularly.

As for Folarin, the last Academy debutant in November 2023, the striker also failed to earn professional terms last summer after graduating and had trials at Millwall, Worthing and other clubs.

In November, the former Republic of Ireland under-18 international joined Northwood in the Southern League Central Division and presently has two goals in nine appearances.