Portsmouth boss' plan to respond to QPR debacle in fight for survival with Leicester City West Brom, Oxford United & Co
John Mousinho has spoken over emerging from the wreckage of the QPR thrashing - and how he plans to put that debacle right with his side’s Championship status hanging by a thread.
John Mousinho admitted the international break has arrived at the right time for his foundering Pompey squad.
But the Blues boss insisted there can’t be too much time to recuperate for his players over the international break, with the need to put right his side’s glaring faults imperative.
Mousinho: ‘We need the break, we definitely need the break’
Pompey are digesting the QPR debacle as league action pauses, with the 6-1 thrashing at Loftus Road making it six league games without a win.
The prevailing view is having the chance to quickly put a defeat right is favourable over a loss hanging over a team, as is the case for Mousinho’s men currently.
Given Pompey’s current situation, however, and the strain on his players amid ongoing injury issues, Mousinho’s clear the chance to regroup is beneficial.
He said: ‘We need the break, we definitely need the break and it’s really helpful to have the gap.
‘If we’d had a game Tuesday or Wednesday I know we would’ve been eager to get back on it, but I think the amount of things we need to dissect and do better, it doe help us to have that gap.’
The notion of Pompey players being afforded a lengtht period off won’t sit comfortably with many fans, with their position in the Championship so precarious.
Mousinho made it clear that won’t be the case, with time away from their Hilsea training base not conducive to getting his team firing at one end of the pitch and plugging the gaping holes which surfaced in his side last time out.
Pompey boss: ‘Don’t solve problems being away from training ground’
Speaking after the game on Saturday, Mousinho talked more about the coming days building up to next week’s Good Friday meeting with Norwich City.
He told BBC Radio Solent: ‘I’ll need to think about how we set the side up, think about team selection, think about how we prepare during the week.
‘From now going back to the games after New Year’s Day when we lost to Bristol City, we haven’t done what we did at QPR in any game.
‘So we have to figure out why that happened and, obviously, make sure that between now and the end of the season it doesn’t happen again.
‘But also when we do have chances to win games and put points on the board, we need to take them. If we do that then we afford ourselves afternoons like that, as unacceptable as it was. There’s been plenty of opportunities to pick up points, which would make that less of an issue.
‘There’s a couple of days off, but not too many because we need to come back and work.
‘There’s the mental and physical break the boys need, but you don’t solve any problems by being away from the training ground.
‘I don’t think we solve any problems in isolation if the players aren’t thinking about what they can do differently.
‘I think there’s a couple of days where they can do that - then there’s a lot of work to do.’