FRESH IN INJURY UPDATES :Over ‘Superb’ Arsenal signing as Portsmouth Boss Faces Barnsley Dilemma
John Mousinho lauded Zak Swanson’s excellence as he faced up to a Barnsley selection dilemma.
The Arsenal signing produced a man-of-the-match display in the 1-1 draw at Derby, on his third Pompey start on the spin.
Swanson showed doggedness and quality on the ball to catch the eye, in an impressive display from his side.
There was a late scare, however, when the 22-year-old went down holding his knee with concerns over the right-back’s condition.
Mousinho confirmed Swanson jarred his knee, but there are no worries over him facing a stint on the sidelines.
That then raises the prospect of Mousinho having to make a call over the Essex lad continuing at Barnsley, or Joe Rafferty returning as he completes his three-game ban after a red card at Stevenage.
It’s a tough call for the Pompey boss to make – but one he’s embracing.
Mousinho said: ‘I thought Zak was superb.
‘We spoke about who was our best player at half-time and we thought it was probably Zak.
‘When he went down we feared the worst, so it was great to see him go back on.
‘I think he’s fine, he just jarred his knee.
‘We’ll see what he looks like, but we want players coming back into the fold and we want those dilemmas.
‘We want those tough decisions and selection headaches.’
Mousinho saluted Swanson’s character after having to be patient behind Rafferty this term, with the Scouser one of his side’s best performers.
He impressed when given an outing at Forest Green last month in the Carabao Cup – only to not make the squad at Leyton Orient in the next game.
Now Swanson has seized his opportunity once again ahead of a stiff test at Oakwell.
Mousinho added: ‘I remember after Forest Green, Zak scored and was excellent.
‘Then I had to sit him down on Thursday and say he wasn’t travelling to Leyton Orient, because you’re not in the squad.
‘That was a tough one for him to take.
‘Zak has applied himself in training and was excellent last week against Peterborough, particularly in the second half.
‘He was the same again against Derby.’
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