Portsmouth winger Gavin Whyte’s absence from the Saturday’s 1-0 victory against Carlisle has been clarified. Blues manager John Mousinho disclosed after the match that the reason for his absence was illness.
Prior to kick-off, there were inquiries on social media regarding the whereabouts of the Northern Ireland international, as he was neither in the starting lineup nor on the bench for the match against Carlisle at Fratton Park.
Although Whyte has had some difficulty demonstrating his abilities to the Fratton Park faithful, many initially assumed his absence was due to an injury and expressed concerns that he might join Marlon Pack, Tom Lowery, and Anthony Scully in the treatment room.
However, Mousinho dispelled these theories by confirming that Whyte was unwell. Additionally, he provided insights on Ryley Towler and Zak Swanson, both of whom were also absent from the game. Their omission from the lineup was solely based on tactical selection, underscoring the strength and depth of the Blues’ squad this season.
Mousinho told The News, “Gavin Whyte was ill – that’s why he missed out. Ryley Towler and Zak Swanson, what can I say, it’s very, very difficult at the minute and I said this in midweek, they don’t deserve to be out of the squad. They probably deserve to be knocking on the door of the team.
It’s a tough place, I think, for them but they’ve been really positive. They’ve been in the changing room at the end, trained this morning to make sure they were ready and that’s my message to the lads – they’ve got to be ready to come in. We’ve got so many examples of that happening and we need to see that.”
Portsmouth extended their lead at the top of the table by three points, thanks to Conor Shaughnessy’s last-minute winning goal and Oxford’s draw against Blackpool at the Kassam Stadium.
The team is hopeful that Whyte, who has yet to score in his 12 games this season, will be available for the Tuesday night fixture against Cambridge United as Mousinho and his team aim to further solidify their position in the promotion race for this season.
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