Portsmouth head coach John Mousinho believes any one of eight teams can still be relegated from the Championship, including his own.
Pompey returned to the second tier after a 12-year absence this season. They endured a difficult start, spending the majority of the first half of the campaign in the bottom three.
Form picked up after Christmas and three successive wins in February saw them move up to 17th, their highest position since August. Recent weeks have been less kind though. They have lost four of their last five and although they remain 17th, they are just three points above the drop zone.
The Hampshire-based side can provide a huge boost to their survival prospects tomorrow when they host Derby County, another club still in the mix towards the bottom of the table.
Mousinho Only Concerned About Winning
Last season, Portsmouth and Derby were battling it out for promotion from League One. Mousinho’s side eventually clinched the title, finishing five points above the Rams. There’s arguably just as much riding on tomorrow’s encounter.
Speaking ahead of the game, the 38-year-old admitted his team were still in a battle alongside seven other teams, although he is only concerned about what he can control:
“I wouldn’t want to speak for the sides above us, because they’d probably say you’re talking nonsense and we’re still in it, but it pretty much feels that it’s us and the sides below us that are in it now.
“So yes three from eight, that feels about right.
“I’m looking at results of teams, but I’ve genuinely not looked at the run-ins of any of the rivals.
“That’s because it only comes around if we win games, so that’s the only thing I’m concerned with.
“If we win the game at the weekend we’ve got ourselves in a really good position. That’s the most important thing for us, by doing that we also take care of one our relegation rivals as well. So that’s the focus for us.”
Writer’s View
Out of the eight teams still fighting at the bottom of the Championship, Portsmouth are the ones that appear to be in the most concerning form. A 1-0 win over Blackburn Rovers at the end of last month was a huge result but there is still a sense that they need at least two more to be assured of their survival. Winning tomorrow would be massive. Not only would it provide a big morale boost but it would open up a six point gap on Derby.
