Friday 24 March 2017 06:22, UK
Burton Albion captain John Mousinho discusses his "crazy ride" at the club, his management ambitions, studying for a sports science degree and the day he disappointed Sheffield Wednesday boss Carlos Carvalhal...
"I've been a pro for 11 years now and, in all honesty, I had given up hope of playing in the Championship," says Mousinho. "It just didn't seem to be a realistic ambition. I went to Burton to rebuild my career in League Two, so it's been strange. Fairly unbelievable, I think."
Indeed, it's been an extraordinary journey for player and club. Back-to-back promotions have lifted Burton Albion into the land of European Cup winning sides - and that's just two of their Midlands rivals. But right from the outset, the Brewers have been able to compete.
"The one for me was Forest away on the opening weekend," says Mousinho. "It was Burton's first ever game in the Championship and we got to go to the City Ground. We lost 4-3 but it was the first time that we thought that we were actually going to be OK here."
Burton won the return fixture 1-0 and they are doing better than OK. One point clear of the drop zone, they are on course to stay up thanks to the "unique atmosphere with the three terraced sides" and their 30-year-old captain hopes to prove the doubters wrong again.
"It's quite funny looking back when I came in and thinking that the club was overachieving in League Two," he says. "We had ambitions at that stage to get into League One. We thought if we could do that then we would be batting well above our average.
"We maybe didn't have the most talented side or the best paid side but we ground out results. People used to say, 'I don't know how they are top of the league?' So being in the Championship is a bit mental really. It's just been a crazy ride."
He adds: "When Gary Rowett left (with the club third in League Two in October 2014) there was a lot of chat in the media that this would be it for Burton. They might finish mid-table but they wouldn't kick on. But we managed to do that under Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
"It was exactly the same (in December) when Jimmy left and Nigel Clough came in. I thought a lot of the press around us was quite negative. Certainly, the feeling within the game was that Burton would blow up and slide down the league. Thankfully, that didn't happen."
Mousinho has certainly got to work with some talented coaches. He regards Rowett as an excellent man-manager and praises Hasselbaink's attention to detail in focusing on the team's shape. He is impressed by Clough's flexibility and his willingness to trust the players.
Having also won promotion with Stevenage, he credits Graham Westley for instilling a winning mentality and thanks Martin Allen for the faith shown in him at Brentford. Another Bees boss, Peter Taylor, stands out for his impressive coaching skills.
It's an eclectic mix and for that reason perhaps it should be no surprise that Mousinho is already looking to a career in management himself. He is studying for his UEFA A Licence and feels it has helped his own game. Mousinho is not the only beneficiary either.
"The youth-team setup is brilliant so I do my coaching over there once a week," he explains. "It does me a favour and hopefully it does them a favour to have the captain there and accessible, giving them a different perspective on it. Hopefully I'm helping.
"Every time you coach you learn about it and you learn about yourself as well. I'm thinking about in the dressing room, I'm conscious of it and every new manager that I have I'm trying to take the positives from them that I think players will respond well to."
For Mousinho, it's not just lip service. Also on the PFA management committee, his commitment to a career in coaching is such that he is also three-and-a-half years into a sports science degree. It's not easy to combine that with a career in the Championship.
It's great when I get an assignment in. But for the week and a half before that I'm thinking it's just the worst idea in the world to take on the course.
"It's a distance learning course arranged through the PFA," he explains. "So you're left to your own devices and can either work steadily like a sensible person would do or leave it to the last minute like me. It's been tough but it's been enjoyable.
"I do a bit of work on the away trips and it's great when I get an assignment in. But for the week and a half before that I'm thinking it's just the worst idea in the world to take on the course. I've got a year to go now so when it's done I'll be happy.
"I thought it would be good to do it because it might help me if I wanted to go into management. As much as every club now has a full-time strength and conditioning coach I do think it helps if the manager has an appreciation of that side of the game as well."
Perhaps the only string that Mousinho does not have to his bow - a little surprisingly given his Portuguese game - is a second language. With typical humility, he is almost apologetic about it and is embarrassed to recall an exchange with Carlos Carvalhal earlier this season.
"We lined up in the tunnel before the Sheffield Wednesday game and their manager came up to me and asked me about my name and where it came from," he says. "He then asked me if I spoke Portuguese and a bit sheepishly I had to say no. He looked a bit disappointed.
"Sporting and Benfica have both come to train at St George's Park and wanted an interview. They have been very disappointed when I've told them it'll have to be in English if they want to do it. I'll have to learn after the coaching badge and the degree." Another challenge then.
All of which might lead one to believe that Mousinho is planning on drawing his playing career to a close but the truth is very different. He is determined to continue "until the body gives out or nobody wants me" but that is unlikely to happen any time soon.
A switch from midfield to the centre of defence has helped. "I feel like I've learnt a lot in the last few years so I'm probably peaking a bit late," he adds. "The plan is to play for as long as possible. Until some 17 year old keeps running past me, I might just keep going."
Mousinho adds: "If you'd said to me two-and-a-half years ago that I'd be playing in the Championship, I just don't think I would have seen the route. But it's happened and it's brilliant. Now I'm here I just want to stay in the Championship for as long as I can."
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