Pompey Talk returns with the spotlight on Blues boss John Mousinho and his Championship strugglers. On this week’s show, head of sport Mark McMahon and chief sports writer Neil Allen discuss how the League One title-winning manager is coping with Pompey's current difficulties - and whether his position is under threat. There's also a discussion on Matt Ritchie's involvement to date and whether Pompey were genuinely interested in Abu Kamara ahead of Saturday's reunion at Hull.
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00:00Hello and welcome to the latest edition of Pummey Talk. I'm your host, Mark McMahon and
00:09joining me today to discuss all the latest developments at Franklin Park is the New Jersey's
00:13Chief Sports Writer, Neil Allen. Neil, welcome. It's been a busy week as usual and you were
00:20down at the training ground on Wednesday to see John Massino. First of all, how is John
00:27coping with the stresses and strains of being a championship manager sitting bottom of the table?
00:34Well, we did always wonder how, because the first 18 months of his time at Pompey
00:39were successful, highly successful really, compared to other managers in particular.
00:44And we did wonder how, when there's a low period, how he would respond, would he snap at questions,
00:51you just never quite know how pressure affects people, especially managers.
00:58But he seems exactly the same. He's very even-tempered, very calm, composed, remains eloquent,
01:08answers questions at length, so he's still exactly the same. And clearly he knows
01:14the situation, he knows that players aren't performing, he's been very honest in his appraisals
01:20of players as well. He said the other day how the established players, the championship bankers
01:27they called them, they haven't performed either to consistent levels. And we're talking about
01:33consistent levels, he believes that everyone's shown glimpses in matches, but consistency is the
01:39issue. So he's still been exactly the same and it's always an intriguing interview because
01:47he talks at length and intelligently and it's a pleasure to interview him really because
01:53you know you get long, thought-out questions, not one-word answers as I've had before with
01:59previous managers when under pressure. So you can compare it. So yeah, we just need
02:05Pompey to win and he can talk more. Was there any managers you didn't like
02:10speaking to when they were going through a rough patch?
02:13Oh, poor Hart was dreadful, dear me. Andy Orford wasn't the best either. But yes,
02:20it just affects managers in different ways. Kelly Jackett was always an absolute gentleman.
02:26I know he had his detractors and there were issues there, he didn't quite connect with players,
02:32but always an absolute gentleman with us, always even-tempered. Pressure never got to him at all.
02:39He was a robot, if anything, like Kelly Jackett. So yeah, but so far,
02:46so far, John Massino's been exactly the same, win, lose or draw.
02:51Yeah, a lot of people will speculate that confidence is a massive factor and where
02:57Pompey are, the longer the win this run goes on, our results don't go away, the players'
03:04confidence will be affected. Has John Massino's confidence been affected in any way?
03:10Well, first of all, players' confidence will without doubt have been affected by the start
03:13of the season. They've come in today with plenty of momentum. Those that were here
03:19previously have come in with plenty of momentum and confidence. And the start of the season,
03:25where Pompey are, winning one game, the defeats, the managers, some of the defeats,
03:29confidence must have been affected massively. The manager will tell you otherwise and everything's
03:35fine, everyone's okay, but confidence is going to be affected. That's a fact.
03:39John Massino, he's learning still as well, isn't he? He came in as a rookie manager
03:47and he's still learning on the job. We know that. He's played this level before, by the way,
03:52but he's not managed at this level. So it's all part of the learning curve. And
03:56yeah, he's learning how brutal this level is. The Saints are instantly punished and Pompey
04:04aren't doing the same, as we saw with Callum Lange in the final moments against Sheffield
04:08Wednesday. That great chance, isn't it? So yeah, he's learning, he's adapting,
04:15as are the players, because many of these players have never played this level before.
04:19Yet we are asking them to perform consistently to keep Pompey up, which is another crux we've
04:24talked about many times already this season.