Portsmouth boss: Why substituting Connor Ogilvie against Oxford United was the correct decision

John Mousinho has explained the reasoning behind Connor Ogilvie’s Oxford United substitution.

The left-back was withdrawn in the 86th minute of Tuesday night’s clash, with the Blues leading 2-1 at the time.

Instead Ryley Towler was introduced as the left-sided defender in a back three consisting of Sean Raggett and Conor Shaughnessy.

Ogilvie’s departure represented Mousinho’s third and final substitution of the League One encounter, with his side seemingly set for a third successive away win.

However, within four minutes, James Henry equalised from close range after Pompey’s backline was exposed by Mark Harris.

And, amid criticism from some supporters over the change, Mousinho lifted the lid on why he brought off Ogilvie.

He told The News: ‘Connor was tiring a bit, he was cramping up, his calf was really struggling, so we made that substitution to get fresh legs on.

‘It was a bit frustrating really because I thought the team were more than capable of seeing the game out.

‘He had been properly out since September against Barnsley, he only played a few seconds in that Cambridge game (October). We had to manage his minutes on Saturday, when he played for 60.

‘He was in a better place Tuesday (Oxford) than he was on Saturday, but we just wanted to manage him again and make sure he didn’t pick up any injuries.

‘It got to the stage where he was really flagging and became an injury risk, so we got him off.’

While Mousinho believes the substitution was essential, he backed Towler and Co to have still seen out victory.

As it was, it was two points dropped against an Oxford side positioned sixth in League One.

Pompey’s head coach added: ‘We have capable players coming off the bench anyway, we know we have players that can come in and have an impact. We think the squad is good enough to be seeing those games out.

‘It’s one of those things we need to learn from it, it was a big part of the post-match view on Wednesday in terms of what we need to do better in those positions.’