The Blues boss has stated his ambition to test the water with West Ham United over a PO4 comeback for the classy midfielder.
But Mousinho acknowledged Potts’ first port of call will likely be trying to make the grade in the Premier League with the Hammers, after his successful loan stint this term.
The 21-year-old’s performances have gone down well with the Fratton faithful, with his season accelerating after a season-long deal was confirmed last August.
Potts’ contract with West Ham runs until the summer of 2026, with Mousinho aware they will have to be patient to bring the player back to Pompey.
But that is something the Blues will look to do, after impressing across 27 outings this season.
West Ham challenge
When asked if Pompey will look to bring Potts back next season, Mousinho said: ‘It’s definitely a consideration for us in the summer.
‘We’ll see how things play out, but my gut instinct is Freddie should go back to West Ham and really challenging over pre-season to get into their first team.
‘It may be similar to last year. We didn’t know what West Ham’s plans were for Fred with the previous manager.
‘Towards the back end of the transfer window they let us have him, hence we didn’t get Fred until the back end of August and didn’t have him for the start of the season.
‘It always happens with the Premier League clubs, particularly when they have the tours away from this country.
‘They usually take the young lads and those on the periphery of the squad and they become available a bit later.’
Mousinho told how Potts became a transfer priority for Pompey last summer, after he caught the eye with Wycombe in League One last season.
And the London-born talent was given a ringing endorsement, as Pompey did their homework on the player.
Mousinho added: ‘We thought Freddie was the outstanding player at Wycombe last year.
‘I spoke to Matt Bloomfield when he was the manager at the time and he said we needed to take him in resounding fashion.
‘It was one where we thought he was definitely one for us and we could see the attributes he would bring on the ball.’
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