Portsmouth boss John Mousinho says League One leaders 'need to stay grounded'
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Portsmouth head coach John Mousinho says the most important thing for his side right now is not getting 'complacent' and focusing on the 'job' before them
League One leaders Portsmouth must "stay grounded", says their boss John Mousinho.
The head coach, who is in his first full season at the club, has guided them to an impressive undefeated league record, with eight wins and four draws so far in 2023-24.
"The media attention is nice recognition of what we are doing," he told BBC Radio Solent.
"We just have to make sure that attention doesn't become a distraction.
"We need to stay grounded and continue to focus on the job."
Portsmouth's players have enjoyed some downtime during the second international break, returning to training this week with a reintroduction on Monday and a pair of "heavy" practice days midweek.
"The break was helpful," Mousinho added.
"Not having a game allowed us to give the lads a bit of time off and I think that was a real positive for the boys after a really busy past six weeks.
"Physically and mentally it allowed us to reset."
'Focus' and 'try to win'
Portsmouth host Carlisle on Saturday at Fratton Park, with their opponents having lost three of their past five League One matches.
Despite the two sides being at opposite ends of the table and the Blues enjoying a six-point cushion on third place, Mousinho says now is not the time to get carried away.
"The important thing for us is not to look at the table too much and get complacent.
"We just want to keep focusing on the next game, keep winning and the table will take care of itself.
"It's really important that we realise that we can't affect any of the other teams.
"All we can do is focus on us and make sure we try and win our next game."