SPRING NEWS.

To quote precisely:

When asked whether he would have any interest in staying at Argyle beyond this season, Tijani said: "Yeah, I have." On if that depended on them still being in the Championship, he added: "I wouldn't say that, but if we stay up I have so much interest."

 

Duplicate again

 

I am a little pee'd off with the news that Argyle have been charged by the FA for whatever went off on Saturday against Sheffield. Pee'd off because everthing I've read about the Tunnelgate it was set off by their gobshite manager who confronted two of our players for celebrating. He has so much form for being a twat that Wilder needs a muzzle. So a Manager lost it and Argyle will now probably end up with a fine they don't deserve. This is the SIXTH time this season Sheffield have been charged.. Previously I didn't give a monkeys who got promoted and who didn't but now I have a preference for who doesn't. I hope they get a twenty point deduction or lose 5 - 0 in the first round of play off games and Wilder gets thrown out of the door.

 

Agreed... our players were after all merely making the way back to the tunnel, unlike their No 18 who provoked the crowd at the home end after scoring their goal. You can see him heading off in that direction here.

 

To be fair to the 18 he was given a bit of verbals by the green army prior to his goal. I have no problem with a player giving a bit back when they have been abused. Fans should not be so precious about it when they give it out themselves. We were talking about that at the watering hole after the game. You can call a player anything you like, his wife, kids, mother.....etc but if they so much as fart in the wrong place then fans go mad with indignation. Give it/ take it is my view not that I abuse anyone. Well except the lino of course but that's part of the matchday experience,

 

Sorry, he’s the No 11. I confused him with 18 for reasons that will become clear. Were you to look back, you’ll see I mentioned them both immediately after the match.

In the first instance, the fans were annoyed by the No 11 for his obvious and blatant exaggeration of an innocuous tackle in the Lyndhurst/Devonport corner. I saw it clearly and it was a farce. He went down to win a free kick and then resisted the referee’s instructions to leave the pitch after “treatment”. He made gestures to the crowd then and he went into the same corner and made gestures to the crowd after he’d scored.

You’ll have has a better view of the No 18 (the wing back) did similar things on the Lyndhurst side close to the halfway line, in the first half.

The referee had obviously lost patience with it and had started calling the physios on as soon as one of theirs went down, which of course means they have to go off.

There were even farcical situations where they’d gone down as if shot and the ref had called the physios on but the player was desperately trying to wave them away.

I understand that fans have a go at players whether they are right or wrong but I was only yards away, and the No 11 was taking the piss.

At times Argyle players go down after very little contact but generally they don’t play dead like this. I’d like to see all referees take a hard line and call the trainers on every time there’s an apparent injury.

If a top of-the-table side deploy these “tactics” to win free-kicks and get their opponents booked, then the blame lies with them. The No 11 could easily have provoked a fan or fans to jump the fence and then there’d have been hell to pay, and rightly so, but a professional player and a leading club must have responsibilities not to deliberately provoke trouble.

This is as you say, not Sheffield United’s first offence. It’s Wycombe Wanders and Gareth Ainsworth with significantly more expensive cars isn’t it? And Wilder remonstrating with two opponents who are merely having a private laugh on their way back to the dressing room is a joke.

 

My error as well because I know it was the No.11 but my comments still stand. He got bollox and gave a bit back. No complaint from me.

 

Season not yet finished and things are kicking off........NORWICH sack THORUP and WBA sack MOWBRAY.

 

Leeds and Burnley both have 94 points and cannot be caught by Sheffield United. They are both therefore already promoted to the Premier League but the Championship title is yet to be decided and both will of course want to win it.

Leeds have a 14 goal difference advantage, helped by their 6-0 thrashing of Stoke.

It's as good as an extra point but the only scenario in which Leeds DON'T come to Home Park on 3rd of May needing to win is if Burnley lose at QPR on Saturday 26th and Leeds win at Bristol City on the following Monday.

If that happened, Leeds would be on 97 points when they come to Home Park while Burnley would still be on 94 points with a goal difference deficit of at least 16. To all intents annd purposes, that makes Leeds champions before they arrive.

Just thought I'd mention it......

 

Also, without comment:

 

Preston must be desperate to sell tickets... they seem to have been only just over half-full for recent games.

https://www.pafc.co.uk/news/preston-north-end-ticket-information-a2425

 

I've been viewing some of the debate about how Argyle came to be relegated, Wayne Rooney v Mirom Muslic and the rest.

As I like numbers, I found a site where you can select a league table at a date of your choosing (https://www.11v11.com).

Here is the Championship table after the games played on 1st January 2025.




Here is the table now less the table then.



Pretty convincing I think.

 

Not good reading

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cvgpy773rx7o

 

Yes and we're led to believe that we're an efficiently run club....yet no Sporting director for months.....in fact we where kept in the dark for quite awhile regarding the previous one leaving.

Also the recruitment of players over the last two season in hindsight has been rather lacking.

So after the Leeds game who makes the decisions on who stays and goes....it needs to be sorted out by someone and quickly....so new players can get a full pre-season training under their belts.....We do need to hit the ground running at the start of next season....and certainly sort out the pathetic away form that got us relegated.

 

I don't agree that the recruitment of players has been lacking, at least not in most cases.

Obviously I don't know any details but I presume that all this is going on in the context of the "new investors". I have had quite a lot of experience of corporate deals: buying a selling businesses, which isn't a million miles away. They are complex and what's worse, the complexity is pretty much the same no matter how big or small the deal. The lawyers see to that. In fact the small ones tend to be harder because you're dealing with individual people and all sorts of personal issues crop up, which don't rear their heads so much when dealing with corporate bodies.

Clearly, this new investor situation needs to be brought to a head. I know nothing about it but I'd be astonished if which league we'll be in next season didn't have to be determined before pen could be put to paper. We've been told it will go ahead irrespective of relegation but I suspect not on exactly the same terms as if we'd stayed up. Even if there's no new negotiation to be done, there'll be a different set of contractual documents to finalise and perhaps forms to be sent to various authorities and so on.

The budget for transfers to be at the disposal of a sporting director is dependent on this and therefore on the recruitment of that individual and the team to work for him or her.

Mirom Muslic has a valid point, most particularly in the first instance in retaining the players we already have. Unfortunately, you can bring a horse to water but it can take a while for it to drink, especially if it's lawyered up.

 

Actually, thinking about it, is that the nearest analogy is establishing (or terminating) a joint-venture.

Not only is there a change in ownership, but also of managerial control.

 

Miron (spelt with a "n") Muslic has spoken out about what is happening at (or not happening) at Argyle at the moment....is he letting other clubs know that he isn't a 100 % happy at Argyle....and letting others know that he could be available ?

 

I havent watched the pre-match press conference as yet but this is Brent Pilnick for the BBC who has a more abrasive style than Chris Errington for the 'Erald, who at times sounds as though he's on the Argyle payroll.

However, the same comments have also appeared in the 'Erald:

https://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/sport/football/miron-muslic-looking-answers-plymouth-10147461

and this even touches on Mirom's future at the club.

I seem to remember that when Neil Dewsip left, Simon Hallett may have said something about "a bigger role for Andrew Parkinson". This may be Mirom saying that the sporting director needs to come from a football or at least professional sport background.

It may also be tied to the fact that his family are still living in Austria. He has three children of school age and, especially with his background of having to flee the war in Bosnia back in the 90's, he's probably loath to have them being uprooted. Given the role of Head Coach is pretty intensive in itself for 10 months of the year, he doesn't fancy having to spend the summer in Plymouth doubling up as Sporting Director. I have some sympathy with that.

 

If Miron (spelt with a 'n' ) stays he might hope that we notice how his name is spelt........

 

This is weak from Andrew Parkinson. We were led to believe it was all but done. This does not say that.


“We have spoken openly that to have the best chance of achieving our mission, additional investment is required to support the existing shareholders and this is something we continue to work towards. We will be able to provide a fuller update on this in due course.”