Simon Hallett will be sweating at Plymouth Argyle amid Ian Foster, Wayne Rooney calls | OneFootball

Simon Hallett will be worried that Wayne Rooney's appointment is starting to go down a similar path as Ian Foster did.

After a rollercoaster start to the season, Plymouth Argyle seem to have stalled out under new manager, Wayne Rooney.

The Manchester United legend was appointed as the successor to Ian Foster in the summer, and tasked with keeping the Pilgrims in the Championship.

Whilst the Devon-based side have picked up some excellent results, such as a memorable 3-2 victory over high-flying Sunderland, their recent form has been nothing short of abysmal.

After Foster's disastrous spell at the helm last season, chairman, Simon Hallett, will be sweating as Rooney's tenure is starting to follow a similar path to his predecessor.

When Foster arrived at Home Park, it looked to be a shrewd appointment on paper. The former Kidderminster Harriers player had been coaching since 2009, having spells in Ireland with Galway United and Dundalk, before returning to England, where he took up roles in the backroom staff at Coventry City and Portsmouth.

Foster spent the time before his Argyle gig with the England youth setup. He was head coach of the Under-18s, Under-19s, and Under-20s. During his time in those three positions, the 48-year-old managed to rack up over a 70% winning record for each age group respectively.

This led Hallett to give Foster his first gig in EFL management, as he replaced the outgoing Steven Schumacher on January 5th 2024. Sadly, Foster was unable to replicate his success he displayed in the England youth team. After a good start to life with the Greens, winning three of his first five matches in charge, the form took a drastic nosedive.

The losses of Luke Cundle and Finn Azaz in January didn't help Foster, but he would muster just a single win in his next 12 matches. This awful run included five-consecutive home defeats without scoring. Ultimately, Foster was relieved of his duties just three months into his reign.

Although Argyle did manage to beat the drop, this appointment certainly had the Plymouth faithful worried. They knew the next appointment would have to be right, if they wanted to preserve their Championship status the following season. Unfortunately, it seems Foster's replacement is heading down a similar path.

Wayne Rooney under pressure, as results begin to stall

After a disastrous spell at Birmingham City, which played a huge part in the club's relegation to League One, there were a lot of questions raised when the former England captain took the job at Home Park.

There was already huge pressure on Rooney externally, as many had already written off the former Derby County manager. However, Argyle fans backed their new manager, eager to see what he could bring before jumping to any conclusions about his managerial ability. With a bigger budget being afforded to Rooney, this allowed him to assemble his squad.

Whilst things got off to an awful start, with a 4-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday, Rooney steadily began to collect results. This relieved the external pressure greatly, as it became apparent that Argyle were no pushovers. Big wins over Sunderland and Luton Town started to build the feel-good factor at Home Park, as fans began to believe they could press on from last season.

Similarly to Foster, things have taken a turn for Rooney. With an injury crisis to deal with, the 39-year-old has endured some tough results in the last week, which have thrown his job into jeopardy. Plymouth have found themselves on the receiving end of two thumpings in their last two matches, at the hands of Norwich City and Bristol City respectively.

The latest reports suggest that the former DC United manager has the next two matches against Oxford United and Swansea City to save his job, or it could be curtains for him. After two away trips where Argyle have conceded ten and scored just once, fan frustration is at an all-time high. This will have Hallett worried, as flashbacks of Foster will be in the Plymouth chairman's mind.

Hallett will be seeing similarities between Foster and Rooney

From the outside looking in, it seems there are many contributing factors to Plymouth's current struggles. As mentioned, injuries have played a part in results as of late. However, fan frustration looks to be directed at the board, rather than Rooney.

The squad isn't up to par for the Championship, which has become evident in the wake of the last two results. Supporters have suggested that you could put even the best manager in the world in that dugout, and he'd fare no better than Rooney. Having lost Michael Cooper in the summer and not signing Fin Azaz on a permanent deal, the squad is missing key players that weren't replaced properly.

However, some blame will lie with the manager, especially with recent results. Performances have been below par and uninspiring for a while now, but some dramatic late goals have been the saving grace for the Pilgrims.

Rooney's win percentage is scarily similar to Foster's. The former has managed a 25% win record with Argyle, whilst the latter was sacked for a 23.53% winning percentage, albeit Rooney has managed three more games than Foster did. This will have Hallett worried, as things are starting to turn down a familiar path.

It was clear that this was an optimistic appointment from Hallett, and one that would certainly get the club in the spotlight. But, after Schumacher's departure last year, Argyle have been unable to find a successor capable of delivering consistent results and performances. For this reason, the Plymouth chairman will be sweating, as his gamble on Rooney looks not to be paying off and fingers will be pointed his way.