Portsmouth boss delivers transfer update over reported £18m attacker race with Rangers - and signing message to excite faithful
The attacker went to West Brom in an £18m deal and Pompey are reportedly keen with Rangers. Here’s the latest from John Mousinho - and a transfer message to lift spirits.
Pompey boss John Mousinho has dismissed transfer links with £18m attacker Grady Diangana.
But the Blues boss has revealed he’s hopeful there will be a new addition arriving ‘really soon’ as his side continue their transfer hunt.
Pompey boss speaks over Grady Diangana transfer talk
There’s now encouraging noises emerging from the Pompey camp over adding to the playing group, with Aussie Adrian Segecic the only completed business so far.
That new face will not be Diangana, though, after reports emerged Mousinho was interested in the outgoing West Brom attacker.
The man who went to The Hawthorns in a deal for £12m with £6m in add-ons, is a free agent this summer with Scottish giants Rangers also said to be keen.
Mousinho has confirmed to The News, however, the former West Ham talent is not someone Pompey are looking to add to the group.
When asked about Diangana, Mousinho said: ‘There’s nothing in that, he’s had no contact at all from any of us.
‘There’s loads of players whose names fly about on the internet and things like that.
‘Sometimes it’s really accurate and sometimes it’s not - and that is one player we haven’t spoken to.’
Mousinho: ‘You need to get big fees right.’
There’s now hope Pompey are getting closer to bringing in the second new face of the summer, with some significant transfer business still required.
The word from the Blues’ training camp in Slovakia was there isn’t likely to be any new additions joining before their return to England tomorrow.
But Mousinho is confident about a done deal being not too far from being announced.
He added: ‘It’s going well.
‘It’s one where we have to get the right balance between bringing in the right players at the right time.
‘There’s no doubt in my mind we could’ve had 25 outfield players here for pre-season, but they wouldn’t have been the right ones.
‘We’ll definitely fill the squad but have passed on players we feel won’t be the right fit for Portsmouth and the Championship. We have to get the right balance on that.
‘The loans will come out a bit later, but with the permanent transfers we’re making sure we bid our time and don’t miss out on ones who are ready and available to us.
‘The list is there and we’re speaking to players - hopefully we can add to the group really soon.
‘It’s really easy to sign players, it’s not so easy signing the right ones.
‘That’s something I’ve learned in my two-and-a-half years as a head coach - signing the right players and sometimes taking your time.
‘We’re in a really different position now to, say, two years ago when we arrived in Spain with 11 of the 14 signings.
‘Most of those were on frees and we were big hitters with not much rivalry.
‘Every time we speak to a player now there’s bottom-end Premier League clubs and top-end Championship clubs interested.
‘It’s a very different landscape, which means we need to be smarter and make the right choices.
‘That’s particularly the case when you’re paying big fees for players - you need to get them right.’