Portsmouth boss’ transfer demand amid clamour for Championship-quality signings
The transfer markets Pompey are exploring is causing debate among supporters, with John Mousinho discussing the issue with reference to Championship, European and loan additions.
John Mousinho stressed players ready to make an impact Championship level now has to be Pompey’s key January signing criteria.
And the Blues boss is comfortable with those players coming from overseas and loan markets in the winter window, if they are up to that mark.
Pompey boss: ‘We’re not thinking we’re going to add just kids’
Mousinho insisted opting for tried and tested second-tier operators comes with no guarantees, as his side aim to kickstart their business this week.
The hope and expectation is there will be signings through the door, by the time Pompey return to Championship action at Sheffield Wednesday this weekend.
There’s been plenty of debate about how those additions will look, with the Blues likely to utlilise the loan market as they did effectively last January.
With Florian Bianchini and Conor Chaplin the only temporary signings at present, there would be space for a further three loanees in the matchday squad if they were involved.
The recruitment team have been exploring a variety of different markets, with Europe once again scoured and the likes of wingers Ousmane Sow and Jahnoah Markelo among those identified.
Some Pompey supporters have called for Championship-hardened additions to come in, with a second-tier survival dogfight likely lying ahead.
Mousinho doesn’t necessarily concur with that stance, however, with his view it’s about the calibre of player coming in. The suggestion from the Pompey boss is Championship nous won’t be ignored, but all avenues are being explored.
He said: ‘We’ve added 800 Championship games in the summer in two players, with Conor Chaplin and John Swift. We’re not sitting there thinking we’re going to just add kids who haven’t played at the level.
‘Marlon Pack’s played extensively at the level, while there’s now players with a season under their belts in the Championship.
Mousinho: ‘It’s about having players ready to compete at the level’
‘We did it with Matt Ritchie, Isaac Hayden and, to a lesser extent, Adil (Aouchiche).
‘In whatever guise these players come, it’s about having players who are ready to compete at the level.
‘Whether they’ve got Championship experience or not it’s largely irrelevant, it’s about having players ready to compete at the level.
‘It’s no guarantee bringing in players with Championship experience, there’s no guarantee they will come in and impact the team.
‘It’s a nice thing to say, but you get players who’ve done that across the board, who haven’t done well in other Championship teams.
‘You get players from abroad who come right in and perform, with everything in between as well.
‘There’s no guarantees, look at the best centre-forward in the Premier League (Alexander Isak) moving for a huge amount of money to the champions, who, for whatever reason, hasn’t been able to get going and is now injured.
‘You have to do the best you possibly can based on what you know, then hopefully they work out.’