I like to think I’m fairly objective and will happily give credit where it’s due, but I’m really surprised by the compliments for Plymouth on here. I thought they looked fine - 14 is some player, Camara impressed again and that 7 was tasty, but overall they struck me as a decent League One side that we’ve run into at just the wrong time. Confidence clearly through the roof. Had three chances and scored three (very good) goals. But 9 times out of 10 we run out of that comfortable winners.
A game of two halves. Thought the first half was very finely balanced, and they maybe just shaded it. But the second half, until Whyte came off, was so so good from us. You can’t accuse us of not making chances - we created more than enough in that 45-70 minute period to win that game comfortably. After that Henry skied effort from the angle, though, you always knew that third goal was coming. Entertaining game though - credit to Argyle for not resorting to any egregious gamesmanship.
I think our lineup killed us first half. I don’t really understand the logic of having Henry and Whyte playing but having Henry as the wife player and Whyte as the 10. Henry drifting in meant their LWB could push up and pull long out of position, which is where all their joy came from first half. Whyte moving wide caused them so much difficulty second half. I feel it also meant it pulled across one of their two CMs, who in the first half had sat on Bran and Kane and effectively neutralised them. That gave Kane the time on the ball to pull them apart in that second period.
No great cause for panic from me. The extent to which we’re dropping points from winning positions this season is becoming a concern, and we don’t seem to have shrugged off that ‘soft underbelly’ tag. But when we get on the ball and play our game we look one hell of a team. Today was frustrating, but it has left me feeling optimistic for the months ahead.
