'Humbled': John Mousinho on classy personal messages from ex-Portsmouth boss and former England man after title triumph

The Pompey head coach he replaced and a League Two promotion-winning manager are among those who have sent personal congratulations to John Mousinho.

And the boss of the League One champions admits he’s ‘very humbled’ by the classy response from within football.

Tuesday night’s 3-2 triumph over Barnsley and the subsequent emotional scenes clearly resonated across the game, not just with other football fans but current-serving club managers.

Danny Cowley, whose Fratton Park sacking in January 2023 heralded the appointment of Mousinho, was among those who texted the League One Manager Of The Year with his compliments.

Another was Nigel Clough, whose Mansfield side clinched promotion from League Two on the same evening, following a 2-1 success over Accrington.

And Mousinho still has many more of his ‘hundreds’ of messages to read.

He told The News: ‘My phone has been going off the hook, I haven’t had a chance to get back to everyone yet.

‘Within the first 24 hours, there were hundreds of messages coming through, people are genuinely delighted for everyone at this club.

‘Quite a few people across the country like the football club and I think they are pleased to see us back in the Championship.

‘I got a really nice message from Danny Cowley, which is a sign of the class the guy has to be honest. He got a really good win for Colchester on the same night.

‘I also received a message from Nigel Clough, who had taken the time to message me having been promoted himself. It just shows you the class of these people, plenty have been on the phone and it’s really nice to hear from them.

‘I feel very, very humbled and very privileged to be able to say these people have been in touch.’

While jubilant Blues players celebrated with supporters in O’Neills and Drift on Tuesday evening and into the early hours, Mousinho and his staff opted for something a little more low-key.

Instead they remained at Fratton Park as they savoured a Championship return.

Mousinho added: ‘We went into my office and the staff were there with their families. Andy Cullen and Tony Brown came down as well and we stayed there until about 2am.

‘Then I went back to mine, I could hear everything still going on in the streets of Southsea, so I decided the best place to be was in my kitchen, with another beer in hand!

‘It was a very, very special night which will live long in the memory. Just spending it with the coaching staff and the interns, guys that come in and make a difference who don’t get paid a penny all season.’