John Mousinho admits he was ‘worried’ Josh Murphy might have been lining up for Leicester against Pompey this weekend.
However, the Blues boss insists there was no offer and no communication from the East Midlands side during those tense final moments of the summer transfer window.
Pompey make the trip to the King Power Stadium on Saturday, notably without the winger who had been heavily linked with a move there at the start of last month.
Murphy remains out with the ankle issue that has kept him sidelined for the past four matches – though a long-awaited comeback against Stoke has now been pencilled in.
It was certainly an anxious period for the Fratton Park supporters in the closing days of the transfer window when reports suggested Murphy was the subject of a £2m approach from the Foxes.
Yet the reigning The News/Sports Mail’s Player of the Season stayed put – and instead penned a new contract running until the summer of 2028.
‘Thankfully we got through that period’
Mousinho told The News: ‘It was nothing we had heard at all, we didn’t have any contact from Leicester and there was no bid which came in for Josh either.
‘As far as we are concerned, he may have popped up on their list, but there was nothing from our standpoint.
‘You are always worried about possibly losing players during a transfer window and, when you see some of the bigger clubs showing interest in certain players, it can be tough to stop them from leaving. Thankfully, we got through that stage and Josh has signed his new contract since then.
‘I suppose it’s a compliment all round if clubs are monitoring any of our players. We are, at some stage, going to sell players to kick-start that player-trading model. It just didn’t really feel at the time like it was a move we wanted to make, certainly without anyone lined up to take Josh’s place.
‘As deadline day ticked down, we were very open in terms of the talks we had with Josh and his agent about possible movement. We felt quite confident (he would stay) as the days went by.’
Chief executive and sporting director admit Leicester interest:
Andy Cullen and Rich Hughes have also previously denied that a formal Leicester bid came in for Murphy’s services.
However, both did acknowledge there was interest from Saturday’s Championship opponents, who currently sit third in the table after drawing four of their last five matches.
Still, Mousinho maintains he was never put under any pressure by owners Tornante to cash in on his key winger during that transfer window.
That was further shown by Murphy being rewarded with a new contract earlier this month, despite still having two years remaining on his previous deal.
Mousinho added: ‘At the moment, we are really trying to build a stable Championship club before we can actually start looking at what we’re doing elsewhere and maybe consider making a profit on a few players.
‘There is absolutely no pressure on us from the board to do that, so it’s a good place to be.’