Harsh to judge Portsmouth boss over 'decent point' stance as season grinds to halt at Oxford United

Win, lose or draw, John Mousinho’s post-match assessments have been conveyed with an honesty and balance which have invariably been bang on the money.

To strike such a tone in reasoned fashion when temperatures were soaring moments earlier is no mean feat, one many of the Pompey head coach’s predecessors have struggled with.

The rules of the modern managerial game dictate one slip, one poorly executed phrase can become your epitaph, in the world of memes and a business where every word is pored over to the nth degree.

We’ve not quite seen a Kevin Keegan meltdown around these parts, though, Paul Cook may have pushed him close on occasion with his combustible and often sweat-drenched post-match briefings. Meanwhile, it won’t take too long for a ‘move for summer football’ to surface in fan conversations over Kenny Jackett, following the infamous line delivered after dropping skipper Tom Naylor for Bryn Morris in the 2020 play-off loss to Oxford.

Others are more malleable in their assessments when the pressure is ramped and things go awry, their rose-tinted version of events more palatable to the cold reality.

The new man at the helm has delivered views free of agendas and attempts to hoodwink supporters, however. No attempts at football gaslighting here.

Sure a broad upturn in results and a free hit to some extent this season has helped with that process, but one of the strongest gusts from the refreshing wind of change Mousinho has brought to Pompey has arrived from his genuine conduct.

So maybe we should forgive the Blues head coach for perhaps striking the wrong tone in the aftermath of Tuesday’s frustration at Oxford.

Mousinho’s assessment the 1-1 draw which extinguished any lingering notions of reaching the play-offs was a ‘decent point’, has been furiously seized upon by the Fratton Twitterati.

The Oxford draw came against opposition winless in 16 and outside of the relegation places on goal difference, albeit one showing signs of life under new boss Liam Manning.

Pompey’s own context, however, was three previous draws which, by Mousinho’s own fair admission, were results his players would rue in the final reckoning.

It meant the assessment jarred with the emotions of those coming to terms with their own disappointments from the season, indeed those crestfallen by most of the past six in League One.

When dealing with recriminations, however, there are many others we should turn to before arriving at the young hope tasked with rejuvenating this club’s fortunes. Especially when his 20 games in charge have done so much to invigorate.

The time will come for a keener eye to be placed on Mousinho’s words and more distinctly his body of work.

It will arrive on August 5 and the start of the 2023-24 season – we’ll see then how the man charged with taking this football club forward calls it.