'There'll be plenty of interest in a good player': Portsmouth boss braced for summer exit for disillusioned ex-Sunderland man

And while the Blues’ head coach is adamant he wants the left-back to remain, he expects plenty of transfer interest.

Hume has endured a hugely frustrating time since moving to Fratton Park in a £200,000 switch from Sunderland 15 months ago.

The 26-year-old has made 11 League One starts since his arrival, while featured just three times under Mousinho, with Connor Ogilvie preferred.

With Pompey seeking to activate Ogilvie’s 12-month option to keep him on the south coast, that selection situation is not expected to change.

And Mousinho believes Hume, who has one year remaining on his contract, could seek a Blues departure in the close season.

He told The News: ‘The left-back position probably depends on what Denver thinks about his future.

‘He has obviously been frustrated not playing a huge amount of games and I wouldn't want to guarantee him 46 matches next year with how Connor (Ogilvie) has performed.

‘It might be something Denver looks at and thinks “Well, I’ve seen what has happened this season”.

‘We’ll leave the ball in his court with that one. He will be assessing his future, there’s no issue with that whatsoever.

‘At this level we have a very, very good all-round left-back and clearly Denver has struggled to get into the side because of that, not because of his performances.

‘At the end of the season, I’ll ask him what he thinks of the whole situation and then we can go from there.

‘I wouldn’t particularly want to lose him, but I don’t want to stifle the young man’s career. I just want to be fair to him, that’s all.

‘My message to him is it would be great to have him here for another year – but that entirely depends on what that looks like overall for the football club and for him.’

Overall, Hume has made 29 appearances for Pompey, with his most recent outing a start in this month’s goalless draw with Morecambe.

He is currently sidelined after receiving a knock to his knee and won’t be considered for Saturday's trip to Derby.

Mousinho added: ‘I will be surprised if there isn’t interest in Denver.

‘Since his time at Sunderland, where he was one of the better performers in that side, there has been a lot of interest in him, including Pompey, who brought him.

‘There's going to be plenty of interest in a good player.’