'As long as he doesn’t go to Southampton' - Harry Redknapp makes John Mousinho claim following his success with Portsmouth

Harry Redknapp believes John Mousinho will be on clubs’ radar for the job he’s doing at Pompey.

But the ex-Blues boss - who guided the Fratton Park outfit to the Premier League in 2003 and brought the FA Cup back to the city in 2008 - has recommended Mousinho sticks by the club who elevated him from a player/coach role at Oxford United to the PO4 hot seat in January 2023.

 ’Arry also advised the current Pompey boss not to follow his lead as his reputation in the game soars. Redknapp, now 77, quit the Blues on November 24, 2004, and rocked up at arch rivals Southampton just two weeks later as their new manager. Understandably, it’s a move that didn’t go down well with the Fratton faithful - even after his return to the club a year later.

Redknapp joked ‘nobody would be that stupid’ again!

With Mousinho & Co sitting six points clear at the top of League One with 10 games of the season remaining, ’Arry told BetVictor: ‘John Mousinho is doing a great job at Portsmouth so he could be earmarked for a job elsewhere, even if he does get the club promoted. But he’s at a really good club at Portsmouth – he’ll be okay there if he sticks with them.

‘As long as he doesn’t go to Southampton he’ll be okay! Nobody would be that stupid to move from Portsmouth to Southampton, would they? You’d have to be off your head! But he wouldn’t do that, like me, I’m sure!’

Redknapp controversially quit the Blues for a second time in October 2008 - just months after lifting the FA Cup at Wembley - to move to Spurs. It’s another defection that sticks in the throat of Pompey fans, even to this day. But that hasn't clouded  ’Arry’s verdict on Pompey’s current promotion ambitions. He believes they’ll be back in the Championship next season - something he claims the Blues’ ‘amazing’ fans richly deserve.

He added: ‘Portsmouth have had a fantastic season so far. I think they can hold out for that promotion place, or even win the League One title, I really do. The crowd they have down at Fratton Park is worth a goal head-start each home game alone!

 ‘The Portsmouth supporters are just amazing, the atmosphere they create at Fratton Park is brilliant – so I think Portsmouth will get promoted to the Championship this year, which would be a big break for them to get back into the second tier after so long down in League One and League Two. The fans really deserve it after all they’ve been through over the years.

'I’m following the club’s results with great interest and I really love to see them doing so well this season.'