At the end of 101 minutes, the mountain of buildup to a first league meeting between old foes for more than 13 years been and gone, the discourse quickly shifted from a feisty and somewhat forgettable stalemate to the world of handshake etiquette.
It was not quite a Thomas Tuchel and Antonio Conte kind of bust-up, given they had to be pulled apart after clashing at Stamford Bridge three years ago, but it is safe to say the Southampton manager, Will Still, did not appreciate his Portsmouth counterpart John Mousinho’s firm grip in the seconds after the final whistle.
This was an eagerly anticipated first match up between these clubs since they were paired in the Carabao Cup third round six years ago, when two divisions separated the sides.
It was always going to be a supercharged occasion, with the 2,700 travelling supporters as well as the Pompey team coach bussed in under a police escort. There was an early decoy run, too, with the team coach entering at stage left, in the corner populated by the away fans, much to the disappointment of the swell of Saints supporters waiting to welcome their rivals outside the main entrance.
There was some early needle between Still and Mousinho, too, the former unhappy at some perceived early time-wasting, glaring at his opposite number after haring on to the pitch to hurry the ball to the Portsmouth full-back Zak Swanson.
Portsmouth succeeded in swiftly dousing the natural excitement that accompanied the fixture and came closest to scoring, with the midfielder Andre Dozzell curling a crisp first-time shot against the crossbar nine minutes into the contest.
Southampton were subdued, particularly in the first half, and midway through the Portsmouth goalkeeper, Nicolas Schmid, was forced off and went to hospital with a wrist injury after colliding with his defender Connor Ogilvie, who had to be replaced at the interval with a neck issue. Mousinho was unhappy with the Southampton winger Tom Fellows, one of a flurry of recent arrivals, for nudging Ogilvie towards his goalkeeper.
“I thought it was really poor,” the Portsmouth manager said. “It is a small push but a small push with massive consequences … there’s no other explanation for that other than he’s trying to injure our players. And he did so successfully, so well done on that. If anyone can give me another explanation, I’ll happily take it.”
There were only two shots on target, one apiece. The Portsmouth substitute Terry Devlin registered a bumbling strike from distance, easy for the former Pompey loanee Gavin Bazunu to gather in the Southampton goal, and Cameron Archer flicked an effort at the substitute goalkeeper Ben Killip.
Josh Murphy’s wicked delivery from the left flank caused Southampton problems and this was undoubtedly a superior result for Pompey, who remain two points above Saints in the second tier. “Who needs Mourinho? We’ve got Mousinho,” the away fans rejoiced.
The Southampton manager suggested his squad, despite much change, is still bruised from relegation. “It was a bit of a flat balloon in the end,” Still said of the game.
“It doesn’t just happen like that,” he said, clicking his fingers. “It is frustrating because people think: ‘You’ve got the team you want, you’ve got to do it [have success].’ Yeah, I know, but it takes time. We wasted everyone’s time in the first half and it was just a bit of a dull derby that didn’t reflect who we want to be.”
After the referee, Matthew Donohue, blew for full time, that strong handshake prompted Still to screw his face at Mousinho. “I didn’t quite get that … I didn’t understand why he grabbed hold of my hand,” Still said.
“Me and him are good mates, don’t worry about it,” Mousinho said, his reply laced with sarcasm. “I don’t want anyone to come off [the pitch] and be the best of friends after the game. I certainly don’t think the managers of these clubs should be best of mates.”
