Portsmouth boss on the 'unnoticed' ex-Manchester United, Millwall and Luton man whose pivotal Blues displays have gone under the radar

Ryan Tunnicliffe has started all five of the head coach’s matches so far, having muscled in from the cold to re-emerge under predecessor Danny Cowley.

Few expected him to remain beyond last summer – yet the 30-year-old has now started 16 matches this term.

Mousinho concedes Tunnicliffe’s remit isn’t flashy, while his game is built upon simplicity and keeping the ball moving.

They are key traits which may have escaped the attention of some – but not those within the club.

Mousinho told The News: ‘Ryan has impressed me over the past five games, I think he has played very, very well.

‘Sometimes his work goes unnoticed in the middle of the park – but we certainly see it when watching games back and observing the effort he puts in over the 90 minutes.

‘What’s probably most pleasing from my standpoint is how progressive Ryan has been in terms of forward runs. He makes that run into the right-hand channel really well, which opens up a lot of space for the centre-forward or the wide-right player.

‘He is very calm and composed in possession without doing anything flashy and keeps things very simple. That might not sound like the most glamorous thing to say, but it’s actually a real trait to have as a player.

‘Simplicity is what football is all about a lot of the time, Ryan manages to do that, keeping the ball ticking over, and is excellent technically, receiving the ball, passing it and then making the angle.

‘As you go through the ages, you see that the more experienced players never seem to be caught out of position. They receive the ball in the spaces and stand in the right spaces when they’re getting countered and defend.

‘On Saturday, Ryan was asked to get right up against one of Plymouth’s central midfielders, who was quite deep. It was a big ask getting up and then, when the ball went over his head, needing to get back and pick up the seconds.

‘I think people are starting to see it now – Ryan certainly doesn’t go unnoticed in the office.’

Having netted twice during an injury-ravaged maiden season last term, Tunnicliffe has yet to score this season.

But Mousinho is confident that statistic will soon end as he encourages his two more advanced midfielders – Tunnicliffe and Joe Morrell – to break into the opposition box more.

He added: ‘Who doesn’t need more goals or assists? It’s one thing we are looking for throughout the team and I’m sure Ryan will be frustrated.

‘He had one shot from quite long-range, but a decent-enough opportunity, so he just needs to get those on target or keep arriving in the box late on.

‘Joe (Morrell) has done that brilliantly well in my five games involved, getting his goal at Exeter, and it’s something we want more of from everybody in our squad.’