It could be argued that Plymouth Argyle and Wayne Rooney are made for each other, after England's second highest goalscorer and appearance maker was appointed as Argyle manager in the summer.
By following in the footsteps of Ryan Lowe, Steven Schumacher and Ian Foster, Rooney is the fourth Merseysider to manage the Pilgrims, and he also has the guidance of his former Everton youth coach Neil Dewsnip to call upon for guidance as director of football.
In the wake of indifferent spells in charge of Derby County, DC United in the MLS and Birmingham City, Rooney is in search for a club where he can achieve some form of tangible success. He currently finds himself at a club who finished 21st in the Championship in the 2023-24 season and improving on that would be regarded as an achievement - certainly in the short term.
Rooney also has a fairly young squad to choose from, including Welsh youth international Freddie Issaka who is being tipped to make a big impact in 2024-25. Then there are the slightly more mature talents such as Adam Randell, Bali Mumba, Michael Cooper and Morgan Whittaker, who will be looking to kick on after promising first seasons in the Championship. The latter two on that list have been linked with moves away from Home Park, Rooney will be keen to retain their services.
One area where Rooney could come into his own as a manager might in the loan market, where he could use his contacts to good effect to bring talented younger players in need of game time to aid their development.With three loan players already recruited, Argyle have berths for two more in their squad.
His short term aim is to ensure that Argyle retain their status as a Championship club and it is a more than realistic ambition if everything falls into place for him.
Player to Watch: Bali Mumba
While Morgan Whittaker attracted many of the headlines with his goal scoring exploits, joint record signing went under the radar a bit for the Pilgrims last season. However, 2024-25 could be the wing-back's season to shine.
In: Nathanael Ogbeta (Manchester City), Darko Gyabi (Leeds United, loan), Muhamed Tijani (Slavia Prague, loan), Ibrahim Cissoko (Toulose, loan), Vic Palsson (DC United), Kornel Szucs (Kecskemeti)
Out: Callum Burton & Dan Scarr (Wrexham), Mikel Miller (Huddersfield Town), Jack Endacott (Tavistock)
