This week marks two years since an Oxford United defender and part-time set-piece coach was installed at Fratton Park, sparking a remarkable chain of events.
The shock head coach announcement was understandably questioned by many of the Fratton faithful, while others among their number gloomily tipped the club for relegation to League Two as a consequence.
Nonetheless, Mousinho captured the League One title in his first full season with the Blues, finally ending the agonising 12-year wait for Championship football.
The indomitable Fratton Park is subsequently underpinning the ongoing battle to now remain there, with 18th-placed Stoke visiting on Wednesday evening (7.45pm).
The last encounter still smarts, of course, producing an abject 6-1 defeat in October – the heaviest loss of Mousinho’s 104 games in charge to date.
And ironically the rematch arrives just two days after Mousinho toasted two memorable years at Pompey’s helm.
He told The News: ‘Every defeat feels difficult. We were so badly beaten that night at Stoke, although there have probably been more frustrating losses, if you look at Burnley and Watford. I felt worse after those for some reason.
‘Yet that was a bad night, a really, really bad night, and came as a surprise because we’d been performing pretty well to that point. The previous game we had a goalless draw with Sheffield United.
‘It gave us a lot to think about, it gave us a bit to change and adapt upon, which we did pretty well when we reconvened against Oxford United and drew 1-1 the following game. A lot of the resilience in the squad since then has certainly stemmed from that heavy defeat.
‘At Stoke there were two goals at the back end of a first half which had been really even. Bang, bang we concede twice, 3-1 down away from home. Still, start the second half well, make sure we’re still in the game until the 60th minute.
‘All of a sudden you are 6-1 down and probably slightly fortunate it wasn’t worse. A chaotic night, certainly one we have to remember and learn from, using the negatives to make us better.
‘I think I’m a better manager than last season. The adversity this year has made me better because we’ve had to adapt – it has definitely been a challenge.
‘We’ve enjoyed not trying to do the same things we were doing last year and not the same things at the start of this season. We’ve been a bit more practical about the way we’ve done things, that means you have to coach in a different way, you can’t do the same thing day in, day out.
‘For some people that’s not the way to do it, with us we think it’s the best way to try to achieve success this season.
‘As you go through and have that experience, two years down the line the amount of things which have happened at least gives you that bank of experience to lean on.’
Under Mousinho, Pompey lost just five times and racked up 97 points as they dominated League One last season.
Adjusting to the step up into the Championship has, not unexpectedly, proven a huge challenge for Mousinho, his trusted backroom staff, and those title-winning players.
Having won one of their opening 14 league fixtures to leave them bottom, the Blues have rallied to at least provide hope to the ever-supportive Fratton faithful.
They have now triumphed in five of their last six Fratton Park games, with the other a draw against Norwich, they occupy the relegation zone courtesy of goal difference, while lying just three points adrift of 18th place.
And victory tonight would see them leapfrog the side which, three-and-a-half months ago, destroyed them 6-1.
Mousinho added: ‘Since entering management, I have learnt to be ready to adapt. Stick to your principles, stick to what you believe in, but be ready to adapt in and around that.
‘There are so many things which happen when you join a football club that you can’t prepare for. Speak to other managers, take your Uefa Pro Licence, read as many books as you want, you might think you’re preparing in theory.
‘But nothing prepares you for the realities of what it’s like to be in charge of a football club. That’s a good thing by the way, this isn’t negative by any means, but you have to adapt day-to-day, you’ve got to be on your toes.
‘You never know what conversations you are going to have, you never know what results are going to be, you never know what someone is going to say to you, to do to you. Everything changes really quickly, so be flexible, adapt and enjoy it.
‘It has been a transitional period for the football club in everything we’ve done. We have gone through a completely new model with a sporting director, we’re in a different league, we’ve got new facilities at the training ground.
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