‘I sign off on everything - my responsibility’: Portsmouth boss’ admission as shocking extent of set-piece issues revealed
Questions are being asked over Pompey’s terrible Championship set-piece defending - underlined by shocking statistics over the issue. John Mousinho responds this evening.
John Mousinho is adamant Pompey’s chronic set-piece failings fall squarely on his shoulders.
And the Blues boss has made it clear he is the man who has ultimate say on how his team set up to defend free-kicks and corners, amid the calamitous defending threatening to send his side into the Championship drop zone.
Mousinho: ‘Everything to do with me, my responsibility’
Mousinho’s side produced two more terrible examples of their inability to be able to deal with corners at Bramall Lane, as Sheffield United feasted on the gifts in their 3-0 victory.
It means Pompey have now shipped a whopping 11 goals from set-pieces this season - the most in the Championship along with Sheffield Wednesday.
The terrible total accounts for nearly half of all league goals Mousinho’s team has conceded - 45.8 per cent - a shocking statistic which shows how deeply rooted the problem is.
First-team coach, Michael Doyle, has been handed specific set-piece responsibilities since the League Two title-winning captain returned to Fratton Park in August.
Mousinho made it clear the blame doesn’t lie with Doyle, however, as he ultimately gives the green light to how his side set up to defend balls into the box in those circumstances.
He said: ‘I don’t just launch Michael out there and say “go and do that”, I don’t just put everything on him.
‘I sign off on absolutely everything we do with set-plays.
‘We watch the lads when we are doing set-plays, which we did on Monday and did again on Tuesday.
‘I’m fully part of that and it’s not something where I can say: “It’s nothing to do with me”. It’s everything to do with me, that’s my responsibility.
‘We can spend the next 48 hours working relentlessly on set-pieces. If we then decide we’re not going to do it at the weekend, it doesn’t make an ounce of difference.’
Pompey boss: ‘It’s about aggression, mentality’
There naturally is huge frustration and questions being asked, over what are the key factors for Pompey’s shocking inability to repel sides from corners and free-kicks.
The Blues use a mix of zonal and man-to-man marking in those situations, but Mousinho made it clear he doesn’t feel it’s a technical issue that is hurting his side at present.
The Pompey boss pointed to a more fundamental factor being behind the defence constantly being breached in those situations.
Mousinho added: ‘I didn’t play long enough at Championship level to have an opinion on it, but whenever I played I had to pick up a centre-half who was usually five inches taller than me.
‘It was about aggression, mentality and making sure that man didn’t make the first contact.
‘I wasn’t perfect at it, but there’s plenty of players who have that aggression and show that mentality. At the minute we’re simply not doing.
‘We’re not doing it and I don’t think size matters. (Japhet) Tanganga isn’t the biggest in the world, but that aggression and willingness to go and put your head where it hurts is lacking for us.’