Pompey boss John Mousinho's press conference ahead of Oxford United clash

The News, Portsmouth

John Mousinho previews Pompey's encounter with Oxford United

Transcript

00:00Will things really change from last night?

00:02I think it'll get worse, yeah, it'll get worse.

00:04You get a night to sleep on it, reflect on the game, watch it back last night and it doesn't get any better, to be honest.

00:11I think that's the way it should be.

00:13I think if you lose 6-1 and come in bouncing around on Thursday morning thinking that things are okay,

00:18then I think you're in the wrong industry.

00:20In a realistic way, not a positive way, but in a realistic way,

00:25we've looked at the game, not happy with many, many aspects of it and that's what we've got to improve upon.

00:30What was the mood like in the dressing room last night afterwards?

00:34Exactly as you'd expect, extremely low, no-one was talking, apart from myself.

00:40I think it was a very, very quiet bus ride on the way home,

00:44probably the worst it's been in my time at the football club.

00:47That's the way I'd want it to be, to be honest.

00:49I think the lads and the coaching staff need to get their heads down

00:53and realise that the level of performance and the result wasn't acceptable and get back in today

00:59and make sure we're not sulking and make sure we don't feel sorry for ourselves,

01:02we've got another game round the corner, but also take everything that we need to take from Wednesday night and go again.

01:07You mentioned game on Saturday, the fact that there's such a quick turnaround between the Stoke game and the Oxford game,

01:11is that a good thing in your eyes?

01:13I think so, otherwise we were dwelling on this game for a long time

01:16and I think there's always positives and negatives,

01:19because what we ideally want to do is get on the training pitch after the game last night and put a few of those things right.

01:25We don't have time to do that.

01:26Everything over the next couple of days is going to be about the physical aspects of recovery

01:30and making sure that we're as fresh and as sharp as possible going into the game at the weekend.

01:35But on the other token, we do have a chance just to put everything right

01:40and a chance at home, it's probably the best possible game that we could have to go back and try and get a result.

01:47How important is a reaction in your eyes?

01:50It's really important, but I completely understand it. I understand the need for a reaction.

01:55I also hate the concept of having to react to a loss.

02:01I think it's not professional.

02:03We shouldn't be sitting here going, OK, we need a reaction at the weekend.

02:07We should have been proactive going into the game.

02:09We shouldn't wait to go 1-0 down to start playing like we did last night.

02:14We shouldn't wait to lose 6-1 to click into gear.

02:17It doesn't take away the fact that we do need a reaction,

02:20but I really hate the concept of that as a professional footballer.

02:27I'm not being proactive enough to go and put in a performance and go and win games.

02:31In terms of Oxford on Saturday, similar club to Boston Respect, obviously promoted from League One last season.

02:36They've had a very good start to the campaign.

02:38In particular, what's the key threats from their perspective?

02:43I went to watch them on Tuesday night.

02:46They were excellent against Luton, really energetic.

02:49They mixed the game up really well.

02:51They got the ball forward quickly in the first half,

02:53and then got the ball down and played in the second half.

02:55A lot of attacking threat across the front five,

02:58with plenty of players that are willing to run and show a lot of energy.

03:03There's a lot of threats that Oxford pose.

03:07I think we saw that last year when they came to Frackenpark and gave us a really difficult game.

03:12That's one of the things we're going to have to be fully prepared for.

03:15A side that's on the up and they're buoyant.

03:17I think it's going to be a very interesting mix between a side that played very well on Tuesday night and us.

03:25I'm very happy with the fact that we're in this camp.

03:30Not in this position, not happy with this position,

03:32but I can live with it being on the other side of it and making sure that we come out

03:36and we have to put Wednesday's performance right.

03:39Back at home on Saturday, how important could that be as well?

03:42Having the fans onside, having that home support?

03:45It's going to be massive for us.

03:47The one thing I do know is that the fans are going to want to see a lot better than what they saw

03:52and what they didn't deserve to see last night.

03:54I think it was an amazing testament to the size and the willingness and the dedication of the fans.

04:03How much more noise they made throughout the game,

04:06how people didn't leave, how we got clapped off somehow.

04:09That was brilliant.

04:12One thing I know is that we're going to get more of that at the weekend.

04:15One thing I also know is that we have to perform and we have to show that we do deserve that.

04:20That's a really important part of going into the weekend and making it a hostile atmosphere.

04:24It's actually giving the fans something to cheer about.

04:28That, for us, is going to be a real focus going into the next couple of days.

04:32John, thank you for your time.

04:35We spoke to you last night about the heat of the moment straight after the game.

04:38Have you had a chance to analyse the game and assess it at all since?

04:41Yeah, we watched the game back last night so we've had a full chance to do that.

04:45Have you learnt anything more from that, looking at it properly and not in the heat of the moment?

04:51Yeah, I think just more of the detail around what went wrong.

04:58In the moment, you get a very good feel of it.

05:02After the game, I think the post-match summary was pretty accurate.

05:05But then you realise specifically what went wrong in certain moments.

05:10That's obviously really useful for us to break down and go again.

05:13Particularly in last night's game, because everything happened so quickly at the start of the second half.

05:17Sometimes you don't have time to process that.

05:21We knew that we weren't doing the right things.

05:23Particularly when we're quite far away from those three goals that get scored in the second half.

05:30It's given us a really good chance to look and break down at some of the things that went wrong.

05:34You've not had a chance to speak to the players this morning?

05:36You're doing the press before training, aren't you?

05:38Yeah, the players are in after this so we'll go over the game after this.

05:41Now you've had a chance to assess the game, what was behind that?

05:47Because it's completely against anything we've seen from Pompey this season.

05:51In terms of your career here as well.

05:53Why that game? Why that night?

05:57Well, that's obviously my job to figure that out.

06:00It's very difficult to know exactly why.

06:02Because if I knew why then we would have changed things before they happened last night.

06:07I think when we look at the breakdown of the game, we started abysmally.

06:11So the first ten minutes we were on the back foot.

06:13We made really, really poor decisions.

06:15We invited pressure and went a goal down and we should have gone a goal down.

06:19And then all of a sudden clicked into gear.

06:22Looked like a more assured side, looked like a better side.

06:24Stopped consuming chances.

06:26Scored a really good goal.

06:27And then after the goal went in, and this is watching it back last night.

06:30After the goal went in, we calmed down and we had a bit of pressure on Stokes' goal.

06:34We're going into half-time thinking, OK, 1-1 is OK.

06:39Maybe slightly fortunate but I think we've done enough to be in the game.

06:43And the decisions we make for the second and the third goal.

06:47We have a throw by the dugout for the second goal.

06:52We lose a battle.

06:54We don't track runners and the ball's in the back of the net.

06:56I can half live with that one.

06:58And the third goal, we're then down to ten men.

07:02So Zach Swanson's off the pitch with a head injury.

07:04And rather than making sure that we're nice and secure and we go into half-time at 2-1.

07:10We play backwards and then we play into pressure.

07:12Completely forgetting, I think, that we've got ten men and that sort of decision-making.

07:16I've got to get into the minds of the players and figure out why they're making those decisions.

07:20We've got ten men. We're away from home.

07:22We're going to go into half-time 2-1 down.

07:25And not invite pressure on ourselves for a pass that isn't even there.

07:30So I'm not sure why we're thinking that.

07:32I've got to really break that down with the boys and get into their heads.

07:36And see if it's something that I'm telling them or something that I'm giving them.

07:39Because like you said, unrecognisable in terms of what we've seen.

07:42I just take those three examples of the goals and not even getting into the goals in the second half.

07:46Just to demonstrate that we know what the issues are.

07:50We just need to know how and why to solve them.

07:53The last time your team were questioned was late in the year, last year.

07:57And what a response that was.

07:59Yeah, there was a really good response after that.

08:02I think we went, I don't know, 19-18, 19-19, something like that, after that.

08:07And that's great.

08:09The interesting thing is that we're a different squad now.

08:13Hopefully better in terms of our reaction, in terms of our ability to react to that.

08:17So we're a different squad.

08:20We're facing different opposition at a different level.

08:23So that was great.

08:24That was a really good reaction from everybody involved at that point.

08:27It would be lovely if we could channel some of that.

08:29But everything has changed a lot since then.

08:31So we're going to have to find our own way to deal with this.

08:33And our own way to make sure that we do bounce back and we do go on a really positive run.

08:39Is that a must win?

08:40I think so, yeah.

08:42In terms of the fact that you've got eight games and you haven't won a game.

08:45Yeah, yeah.

08:46I think for all of those reasons.

08:48And we go into every game and we try to win it.

08:52But I don't think there's any point in sugarcoating it and me trying to just play it down.

08:57If we don't win the game Saturday, the season isn't over.

09:01And we've got plenty to play for, plenty of points to play for.

09:03But my attitude is it's a must win.

09:06We have to win the game at the weekend.

09:07Obviously, you'll be evaluating all the players' performance from Wednesday night.

09:11What do you make of Will Norris?

09:13I think that Will will be disappointed for the first goal.

09:17And you look at it anyway and there's no way that Will's saying that he shouldn't save it.

09:25So I think he knows he should save it.

09:27And I think when we spoke about that third goal there.

09:29Where it's just the decision making to play into the middle of the park.

09:33And Will knows that he needs to make a better decision.

09:35And it's not just Will.

09:36I think it's collectively the fact that we go back to him in the first place.

09:39So I think Will knows that.

09:41I think the penalty incident isn't his fault.

09:45I think it's a really poor refereeing decision.

09:47And then beyond that, I think the goals that are scored, he can't do anything about.

09:51So I think in those two moments, the first and the third goal.

09:54I'm sure Will will know he needs to do better.

09:56Obviously, you've got to Smith here as well.

09:57Is that a decision to make at all for Oxford?

10:00There's always a decision to make.

10:02And with all of the players.

10:04And all of the players are fighting for their positions at all times.

10:07So there's plenty of competition in the squad.

10:09And we'll make that decision on every position going into the weekend.

10:13How's Smith been doing as well in training?

10:15He's been doing well.

10:16It's taken him a bit of time to adjust.

10:18One thing we haven't seen a huge amount of him is in games.

10:20We saw him a bit in the Havant game.

10:22But without him having to do a huge amount.

10:24And that's one where we'll speak to Joe about all the goalkeepers' progress.

10:28Because he works with them a lot more closely than we do with outfield players.

10:32You've locked a lot of motion players since the season started.

10:36All the newcomers as well.

10:37But we've not seen him in action.

10:39What point can we expect to see him in action?

10:41I just think when we think it's right.

10:43And when we think he's ready.

10:44And we think it's the right thing to do.

10:45And one thing I'd say about Will is.

10:47Going into the game on Tuesday.

10:49He'd been outstanding in a couple of the games that we'd had previously.

10:53He made a really, really good save to keep us in the game against Sheffield United.

10:55And had a very, very short performance.

10:57Keeping a clean sheet at home.

10:59So we don't want to be overreactive.

11:00We want to make sure we're realistic with all of the team selection decisions we make.

11:04But also not overreactive.

11:06And sort of chuck the baby out with the bathwater.

11:09And finally, in terms of injuries.

11:11You mentioned that foul on last night.

11:13Any more developments on that at all?

11:15No, nothing.

11:16I'll catch up with the physiotherapy department now and see where we're at with that.

11:18And Conor's shot on the seat?

11:20Same there.

11:21So just haven't had the scan results back yet.

11:23But expect that we will have them today.

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