Portsmouth boss John Mousinho identifies significant Blues improvement after season low against Bolton

But the head coach has insisted there is more to come from his men as he continues to stamp his mark on the squad.

The then managerless Blues’ loss at the University of Bolton Stadium in January represented one of the lowest points in the campaign as their torrid form in the league continued.

This saw Pompey slip to 15th in the table after a run of one win in their previous 15 League One outings.

It came just six days prior to Mousinho’s arrival at Fratton Park, which has since seen his men win four of his eight games in charge.

And the 36-year-old is adamant his rejuvenated squad have shown signs of improvement under his watch.

He told The News: ‘It was a tough game for Pompey at the time, not just because of the result but the performance and the way Bolton went about their business was excellent and we couldn’t get to grips with them at the time.

‘It was a good yard stick in where the side were at and maybe a reflection of the confidence in the group at the time.

‘There were still some good players out there and clearly there’s some good players in the changing room who are capable of excellent performances but confidence was low at the time.

‘That is something we’ve really focused on picking up over the past few weeks by letting players know how much we’ve backed them and how much we think they’re able to go out and deliver a result.

‘It’s difficult to say and to put a number on it but I’d like to think that it is up to individuals to have a look at the side and see what they think has progressed.

‘There’s some things that have worked for us really well and others that haven’t.

‘One thing that we are really aware of is that we have got a long way to go, there’s a lot of progress still to make.

‘While the performance was really good on Saturday for 45 minutes, there’s probably another 45 where we need improvements.

‘We’re not getting carried away with anything, we’re making sure we keep working hard and working on the right things and we know it’ll be one of those things that happens over the medium and long term.’

Pompey welcome Bolton to Fratton Park on Tuesday, with Mousinho's men unbeaten in their last three league outings.

While Ian Evatt’s men have won seven of their last eight fixtures, the Blues boss believes the contest at PO4 will be a true reflection of the progress made in recent weeks.

‘Absolutely we’re going to be getting a result at home, we look to get results wherever we go and try to win games either at home or away.

‘More importantly what we want to see is progress, we want to have a look at where the side was when myself and all the coaching staff came in and see if we can move that forward bit by bit every week.

‘The Bolton game is another good yard stick of how far we’ve come because that was the last game before I came in where we lost to them away from home.’