Portsmouth boss stunned after 'impressive' signing's rapid adjustment to English football
The Comoros international has made five appearances for the Blues so far
Ijad Mohamed has set the bar high after settling into English football with breathtaking speed.
That’s the verdict of John Mousinho, who marvelled at a stunning Carrow Road performance in the Comoros international's second Pompey start.
Retaining his place for the trip to Norwich, the 26-year-old produced an outstanding midfield display in the Blues’ 1-0 victory which lifted them into 13th spot.
Mohamed, Madiodio Dia and Regan Poole were Pompey’s outstanding performers, yet it was the August signing from the Portuguese top flight who shine brightest of all.
And Mousinho has been impressed at how quickly Mohamed appears to have adjusted to the Championship.
‘Very impressive’
He told The News: ‘Iyad was very impressive considering it’s his second start in English football.
‘He got around the pitch very well, he showed the quality we know he’s got, the balance and the understanding of the way we want to play.
‘He just tired towards that 60th minute, so we needed to bring him off - and we’ve got that luxury at the moment with Ebou to come off the bench.
‘That’s why we brought Iyad to the football club. You never know what the adjustment period is going to be when you bring players over from different leagues in Europe, but he has played at the top level in Portugal, so he’s had a decent enough career so far.
‘He is 26 and has played in the Africa Cup of Nations, he recently has gone away with Comoros and had three starts there.
‘I do expect it of him, but sometimes you never know how players are going to come and perform. It’s one thing playing at Fratton Park and another thing coming here winning.
‘The bar is high - and the whole group need to make sure they maintain their standards.’
Pompey lost Colby Bishop to a knee injury during the warm up, while Keshi Anderson has been ruled out for up to eight weeks following a hamstring tear as his misery continues.
Yet again Mousinho named two goalkeepers on his bench - Daniel Bielica and Ben Killip - with no other senior players to call upon.
And with a trip to Wolves on Tuesday evening, the head count for availabilities is continuing to dwindle.
‘I’m telling him “You have to play 90 minutes, I can’t bring you off”’
He added: ‘You look at where we are with the squad at the moment.
‘We had to play Abs for the full 90 minutes, he worked his socks off and made the game change when he won the penalty. But I’m telling him “You have to play 90 minutes, I can’t bring you off”.
‘Ryan (Kavuma-McQueen) is a 17-year-old and has just played three starts in a week for first-time ever at this level. We are also asking him to track Jack Stacey constantly through the game.
‘We’ve had to readjust a bit because of the players we have out at the moment, we didn’t really have those winger options to bring off the bench with Murph, Keshi and Franco out, while Tyrese had to go up front.’