He told The News: “Looking at the decisions we made for the second and third goals, we had a throw-in near the dugout for the second goal. We lost the battle, didn’t track the runners, and the ball ended up in the net. I can somewhat accept that.
“For the third goal, we were down to ten men, with Zak Swanson off the field due to a head injury. Instead of ensuring we stay secure and go into halftime at 2-1, we played the ball backwards and into pressure, completely forgetting we had only ten players. This all comes down to decision-making.
“I need to understand the thought processes of the players and figure out why they’re making those choices. With ten men, playing away, and about to go into halftime 2-1 down, we shouldn’t be inviting pressure for a pass that isn’t even on.
“I’m unsure why we are thinking this way. I need to break it down with the team, to see if it’s something I’m instructing or if it’s coming from them.
“We were a different team from what we’ve shown in the past. Just considering those three examples of the goals—without even delving into the second half goals—highlights the issues we faced. We need to understand why this happened and how we can fix it.”
Mousinho took advantage of the overnight bus ride back from the Potteries to review match footage and identify those responsible for the 6-1 loss.
On Thursday morning, before meeting the players for training ahead of the match against Oxford United, he expressed that he believes he has found the answers.
He added, “In the moment, you get a strong sense of it. The post-match review was quite accurate, but watching it again reveals what specifically went wrong at certain points.
“There are times when you don’t have the opportunity to reflect, especially when we were far from the goals conceded in the second half.
“It’s my responsibility to communicate this, and it’s hard to pinpoint exactly why it occurred. If we knew, we would have made changes beforehand.”
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