Portsmouth transfer weakness laid bare amid John Mousinho uncertainty
John Mousinho’s future has been under the spotlight this summer, with both Bristol City and Stoke City registering an interest.
Uncertainty and speculation surrounding John Mousinho’s future will hamper Pompey’s transfer plans.
That’s the view of former Fratton favourite Gareth Evans, who believes the Blues’ summer arrangements ill be affected by links with a move away for the in-demand head coach.
The 40-year-old has been touted with an exit since the season’s climax, with both Bristol City and Stoke City registering an interest.
That picture now looks to have shifted, however, with the Robins announcing the appointment of Michael Skubala on Friday, while Mark Robins looks poised to remain in the bet365 Stadium hot-seat amid the imminent arrival of a new assistant coach.
Despite the speculation, Andy Cullen insisted last week it remained business as usual behind the scenes at the Blues’ Hilsea training base as they set their sights on a busy summer in the transfer window.
But Evans, who amassed 218 outings during a successful five-year stay on the south coast, believes potential targets could be put off of a move to Fratton due to uncertainty over Mousinho’s future.
John Mousinho’s future will hamper transfer plans
The former midfielder told The News: ‘From a players perspective, yeah absolutely (if manager uncertainty affects whether a player wants to sign or not).
‘If the manager’s not in place, he’s not going to be doing everything in his power to have the recruitment drive that the football club needs at this moment in time because he doesn’t know if he’s going to be there.
‘If I’m being approached by Portsmouth Football Club, I want to be sitting down with the manager and I want to know what his future is.
‘I want to know what his plans are for the football club, I want to know where we’re going away for pre-season.
‘All of sudden all of the logistics of the season are up in the air because we don’t know whether the manager’s going to be there or not.
‘The first person whenever I’ve ever been approached by a football club that I speak to is the manager.
‘Is Mousinho going to be making phone calls for a club he doesn’t know if he’s going to be in charge of next season? I highly doubt it. Everything’s on hold at the football club until the manager’s future’s in place.
‘They need to do a recruitment drive and they aren’t going to get new players in unless they have the manager’s future sorted.’
Why head coach uncertainty can affect Pompey plans
It’s not just potential transfer targets who could share their concerns amid speculation over Mousinho’s future, but the current crop of players as well.
With Connor Ogilvie and Zak Swanson’s future also up in their air having yet penned new deals, Evans believes what happens to the head coach could impact their fate.
‘Make no bones about it, the lads are all on holiday at the moment sitting on the beach but they’d be checking their phones all the time to see if there is any update on the manager that’s the first thing you’d be thinking about.
‘Once your future’s sorted in terms I’m thinking of the likes of Connor Ogilvie and Zak Swanson, they don’t know if they’re coming or going with the club themselves so they’ll be sorting out their own future as well.
‘A lot of their thinking and a lot of their motivation behind staying at Pompey will be who is going to be the manager?
‘It’s quite important to get the manager’s future sorted before the players because I would imagine Swanson and Ogilvie have enjoyed being at the football club and playing for Mousinho.
‘So if they know he’s going to be the manager next season, that would be a huge incentive for them to stay at the football club and sign the contract.
‘The rest of the squad will be keeping an eye on the situation regarding the manager because I think you know where you stand.
‘The majority have played under him this season and the season before so they know where they stand with him, they know what to expect, they know what every day looks like, they know what the philosophy of the manager is. A lot of that dictates where your head is at (as a player).
‘They’ll all be thinking about next season, if a new manager comes in will he like me? Will I play? What formation does he play? It’s really important from a players perspective to know.
‘They’ll be quite keen on John staying I’d imagine and everything else will follow from there. The players will be pretty hell-bent with what’s going on with the manager.’