Blues head coach John Mousinho talks to The News after seeing his side come from behind to beat Wigan at the DW Stadium
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00:00 Here with Pompey boss John Massino as I show my unprofessional side here with Pompey boss John Massino
00:05 John the old Reganpool Paddy Lane one two again, isn't it? It's becoming a bit of a habit the last couple of weeks
00:10 Yeah, you know, I think you know, one of the one of the first things that's really pleasing is that we score from a set-piece again
00:16 You know, it's not just about being good from set-pieces
00:19 It's creating them and making sure that we you know
00:22 When you have sustained pressure and sustained attacks inevitably you're gonna have quite a few corners quite a few free kicks
00:27 I mean, you know, we still want a bit more I think in the second half a couple of deliveries are dangerous a couple
00:32 Hit the front man and we need to get better with that
00:34 But yeah, I'm really really happy for a Regan to score again
00:36 And yeah, feel for feel for Paddy's becoming a goal threat and his overall performance is really good as well and another habits
00:42 Developing this season is a come from behind victory as well. How pleasing is this suit to see those qualities from your players?
00:47 It's great. We don't want to obviously make a habit of going to go down in games, but it's gonna happen
00:52 You know, I I actually thought we were we were okay
00:54 We didn't started really well as you would have expected and you know, they
00:58 Never really good side to be honest. Yeah, you know, they've the lead position is completely false
01:03 And I actually think it's even even more false if that makes sense because when you start with minus eight points
01:09 It's really really difficult to make those up. So to be where they are
01:12 They've got a lot of attacking quality in the side and some players that have played the majority of careers in the championship
01:17 So to go one nil down
01:19 I think the biggest compliment I give the lads is that I didn't feel that they panicked
01:23 I felt quite calm that we were
01:25 you know just gonna go against it to the game plan and create chances which we did and yet to
01:29 Obviously win the game from from coming from behind show that resilience and throw that
01:33 Yes response to adversity was brilliant. Yeah, it does show certain credentials
01:38 It's a box ticket in the end in that in that sense isn't it to come back in and just nail the three points
01:43 Yeah
01:43 I think the the biggest thing for this group is is their mentality and and trying to shift that from from maybe where we were
01:51 towards the back end of last season where
01:53 I felt we could we could come and beat sides and come and win games, but we weren't necessarily
01:57 controlling games particularly well then
02:00 Yeah, again, I thought two good sides in in possession today and for the majority of the game
02:05 We controlled it forget the red card. And yeah, really really happy that the heads didn't drop
02:10 We just got the ball got on with it and scored two goals before half-time. What was your assessment of that red card decision?
02:15 It looks at the time like like he jumped in and he's obviously injured Marlon, which is which is the most disappointing thing for us
02:23 Yeah, I haven't I genuinely haven't seen it again
02:27 I thought at the time that those sort of challenges could definitely end in yeah
02:31 I'm in red cards because they injured players and you know, you guys probably know better than me Marlon isn't coming off and no
02:37 No, sir. So yeah, that was I thought it was just an unnecessary
02:42 Challenge at that stage of the game and yeah, obviously the rest of you don't
02:45 What was the situation with Marlon? What was it?
02:48 I think he's rolled his ankle now
02:50 He's rolling his ankle I think underneath the weight of the challenge and you obviously tried to try to carry on
02:54 Credit to him. I don't think he would have he would have come off of his own accord
02:59 So credit to him and also if they sort of tell him off a bit
03:01 That's not only struggling and we'll bring substitutions on. So yeah, we'll assess how that is and and see where we are on Monday
03:09 Lovely on the on the benches today, which happens sometimes. Yeah
03:13 Again I don't want to sound like awesome banger too much, but I didn't I didn't see what had happened on the bench
03:21 I wasn't involved in it. I
03:23 Think I think there was a we didn't ask for the red card on the bench
03:28 So sometimes we do sometimes we're not sometimes we ask for cards. We didn't ask for it at all
03:31 I think there was a reaction to maybe what our players did but you know
03:36 I didn't think the players were reacted badly at all and to the challenge and yeah
03:40 It's a bit of a bench referee dealt with it. No problem. John's picked up a yellow. So yeah, he'll
03:46 Have to bring the cakes on Monday
03:48 They were calling for a penalty to go review on that one. Will you go and ask something again?
03:52 Honestly, yeah, you can't see much from from where I am
03:56 Anyway, and is it one of the one of the ones in the first half?
04:00 It's second half where there's a shout for a handball on Marlon
04:02 I think so at all. I mean, I thought it would have been very harsh. I did see that one
04:07 I did see that and yeah, I thought it would be extremely harsh
04:10 I just think there's you know, we having I've conceived that penalty against Derby, which yeah
04:16 It's probably probably a penalty in the day
04:19 I think the ones where just accidentally hit somebody's hand and it's down by the side. They're just not penalties
04:23 Just get on with again. Yeah, Alex Robertson in a couple of different roles. They what was your assessment of him?
04:28 I thought he was really lively again
04:30 I thought the three midfielders really controlled the game and caused we're gonna few problems and then Alex started off as a
04:35 As a tenant and dropped back into alongside Joe when Marlon came off and yeah very composed
04:40 Mature performance I think from from someone so young and he's really grown into his role at the club and whatever role we ask him to
04:47 Play really really pleasing anything is missing at the moment is a goal from where I was
04:51 Yeah standing that I thought it was in standing safe
04:54 Goalkeeper made a couple of really good saves in the second half to kick him in the game
04:58 So yeah, very very pleased for Alex as well
05:00 Gavin White on in the second half a good chance to be fair
05:03 But there was a number of bright moments from him as well, which is positive to see
05:06 Yeah, I just spoke to Gavin there. I said, you know, that's that's better. That's more like it
05:09 That's that's the sharpness that we that we need and that's the sharpness that I know that that Gavin can produce
05:14 Having having played with him having watched him over a number of years and obviously we're not hiding behind anything
05:20 We don't think that we've quite seen that yet, which is which is a really good
05:23 I think a really good place to be in in some ways because we know yeah
05:26 We know there's more to come but at the same time
05:29 Yeah
05:29 We have to just get a bit more out of him and I think I was a really good step in the right direction for
05:32 Catholic very very sharp and the only thing missing again for him was a goal
05:35 Yeah, a bit of context of Gavin. He's come to a new club. There's always a lot going on
05:38 I think he's got a young young baby as well. So there's stuff that some people might not necessarily see. Yeah, absolutely
05:43 There's always there's always context. It's as a fan. You you just see the sort of performance on the pitch
05:49 There's a huge amount that goes on with them with these these young guys and yeah with with Gavin. He's come over
05:55 He's moved from Cardiff
05:57 We're back to Belfast in the summer because I didn't know what he was gonna sign for
06:00 Yeah had a young child I think in
06:03 In August maybe the back end of July. It's a huge amount of upheaval and sometimes
06:09 Yeah, it takes a takes a while to takes a while to settle obviously the the quicker you do it the better
06:13 And then all players are individuals and we've got to treat them as such. So yeah, I think once
06:18 Once that settles down as well with with Gavin having two children myself
06:23 I know it is a tough one and when you're a professional footballer
06:26 You unfortunately have to leave your wife and missus to do a lot of the night shifts
06:30 And yeah, all of those things do do play a part and that's our job
06:33 We've got to be aware of all those bits
06:35 Perversely when you're on such a long unbeaten run you're waiting for almost waiting for that bump in the road to see how you react
06:40 To that moment of adversity. It's not coming at the moment at all is it but and and you march on
06:44 Yeah, I mean we haven't we haven't had the bump in the road in terms of losing a game
06:48 I think we've got plenty of bumps in the road along the way in terms of adversity
06:50 And if you look over the last few weeks we spoke about it already. Yeah today
06:54 Obviously going a goal behind away from home early
06:58 I think getting a goal behind at home last week when the expectation after such a strong performance on Barnsley was going to be
07:04 You know, we we might just turn up and roll them over not from not from us, but some people externally
07:10 I think that and yes was always really really difficult
07:14 Massive adversity with Barnsley in the second half and Derby on Saturday. So yeah, although we haven't had the loss
07:19 I think we've responded really well to some some difficult moments and again
07:22 I said to the to the lads in there that's what you have to do through a season
07:25 They aren't going to be that many straightforward games. Unfortunately, there's a lot of good sides in the league this year
07:30 Yeah, definitely a lot of good sides and I'm sure the lads that we've played today
07:35 We're going to play today are going to be one of them
07:37 So yeah
07:37 We have to make sure that we always respond properly to those small moments in games
07:42 And small moments in training and whatever it is and come out the other end positively
07:45 I've been saying to people, you know
07:47 Look at things at the end of September once you've negotiated what Derby's and the Barnsley's and the Wigan's and and the boys are
07:52 You know showing good credentials to come through those challenges on the road. Yeah, you know, absolutely
07:57 The only disappointing thing I suppose so far this season is there were a couple of fixtures in August
08:00 We thought we could have picked up a couple more points and we didn't that's that's fine. That's part of it
08:04 And yeah, these this run has been
08:07 On paper and in practice really tough. It hasn't been easy at all
08:11 Credit to the boys and the staff and everybody involved at the football club
08:15 You know again credit to the fans. They show up in I'm not sure how many I always think it's thousands
08:21 It sounds like thousands anyway, they show up in their thousands and sort of dominate away stadiums
08:25 And yeah, that's all of these things have to come together for you to be successful
08:29 Perhaps not worry too much about the league at this juncture, but it's there's credit in the bank being mounted up
08:34 There is it's a four-point gap to third place after today's results. Yeah, I actually haven't got no signal here
08:40 I've already looked at it. I do look at the league, but there was no signal here
08:42 So yeah, I haven't had a look at that yet. I haven't looked at the results and yeah, we just need to make sure that
08:46 Is it's a fine balance really don't get carried away with looking at the league table
08:50 But at the same time make sure that we have you know, we cherish that position
08:55 I don't know if that's the right word, but that's something that the lads have achieved now
08:59 I don't don't give it up and certainly don't get up easily make sure that you do everything you possibly can to
09:05 Maintain where you've been. I'm just one little bit of housekeeping Connor Ogilvie misses again today. How's Connor? Connor's? Okay. He's okay
09:11 the likelihood is that he
09:14 won't be back for Tuesday and
09:16 You know, we touch and go probably for for Saturday
09:20 It's just that going strain he picked up at Barnsley and just one of those that
09:23 Is not recovered
09:26 Quickly, they don't to be fair and Connor is is a really good athlete
09:29 he'll recover as quickly as he can so yeah, I'm yeah one of those unfortunate things, but I thought after a
09:35 Tough opening to the game last week for Sparks. Yeah, I thought he was brilliant today
09:39 Yeah, and one of the things I said to me competed with with Humphries the right winger
09:44 Yeah, and another player who's I'd say championship level
09:47 Physicalities right up there and sparks he properly competed and when he does that you see the quality
09:52 He's got the other end of the pitch and cross after cross especially in the first half that really caused me problems
09:57 Yeah, we're all kind of wowed by the kind of the crosses and the arcing on that on that on that delivery
10:01 But second half a different side to his game wasn't there when when when needed yeah, and he had to craft
10:06 He's he had to he had to work really hard
10:08 It's also easy to we forget because we we demand so much of the players
10:13 We expect so much the players that I think sparks he is 22 Abu is 20
10:17 This is Abus first time that he's had a run of games in in any league fixture
10:22 And it's a really young left side that did a performing really really well in difficult circumstances again
10:28 You look at where Abus gone from late in the way to here today where you know?
10:33 I don't think we sub him after 80 to 84 minutes because he looks slightly tired out
10:37 So yeah, really good combination down that left-hand side and sparks. You just produce some really good moments Cheers