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Guy Whittingham has insisted John Mousinho deserves to be credited with Pompey’s impressive victory over Bolton.

And the former Blues striker highlighted the new head coach’s impressive tactical intelligence as the key behind the result.

Before the Blues’ equaliser against the Trotters, Paddy Lane and Tom Lowery were set to be introduced ahead of a crucial final 15 minutes to the contest.

However, Ryley Towler’s 73rd-minute leveller put paid to the change with Mousinho’s men growing in momentum.

While Dane Scarlett came on just after the hour mark, Pompey’s other substitute was enforced with Joe Pigott replacing Ronan Curtis on 77 minutes.

Whittingham is adamant the decision not to bring the pair on was a major factor in the result, which saw the Blues go on to find the net twice in the final six minutes to seal the impressive victory.

He told BBC Radio Solent: ‘When you’re preparing to make substitutions, you’ve got two players coming on Lowery and Lane, and then you score and you equalise. It’s quite easy to think no we’ll keep doing the same (bringing on the substitutions).

‘Mousinho along with his coaching staff had a chat and decided it’s 1-1 - let’s have a think about this.

Guy Whittingham was impressed by John Mousinho's tactical awareness for their 3-1 victory over Bolton.

‘They had a think about it and brought Scarlett on (before the equaliser) as an attacking option to give Bolton more to think about.

‘Maybe they thought at the beginning when they were going to bring Lane and Lowery on that the midfielders had played against Cheltenham, and were they going to tire and can they get some momentum going? But it changed at 1-1.

‘The substitution then really helped Pompey force themselves even more on to Bolton and got the result.

‘I also like the way Mousinho mentioned the crowd when he said for half a second he worried and then heard the crowd get behind them.’

Before Mousinho’s appointment at Fratton Park, he spent 20 months as chair of the PFA.

That role is something Whittingham believes will play a key factor in his future success with the Blues.

He added: ‘He had a decent career in football and he was also chair of the PFA, you don’t become chair of the PFA if you’re not very clever.

‘He’s got some intelligence and he’s looking like he’s developing his football intelligence as a manager as well.’

Portsmouth legend identifies key reason behind Blues’ impressive triumph against play-off chasers Bolton