Paul Merson believes Wayne Rooney will find it difficult to adapt Plymouth Argyle’s players to his tactics. The Manchester United and England manager has had an ugly start to his tenure as Argyle manager after losing 4-0 to Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday.
Rooney, 38, was brutally honest in his assessment of Sunday’s performance, saying his Argyle players lacked the fundamentals and were unable to stick to their tactics.
Former Arsenal star Merson believes the manager’s toughest task will be to manage his expectations and remain patient when things don’t go to plan.
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“It was the way they played,” he told Sky Sports. “The way Wayne talked afterwards and said they didn’t listen properly, that wasn’t the plan; that’s worrying. But that’s what Wayne is struggling with.”
Merson continued: “It’s tough. When you’ve been where he’s been and he’s constantly having to tell the players what to do, it takes some getting used to. I think he’s got to be patient and I think (this weekend’s game against Hull) is already a big game of football. I really believe that.”
Rooney didn’t hold back when publicly criticising his players after the opening day defeat, and he hinted that changes would be afoot if he felt that some in his squad – regardless of their status – were not performing to their full potential.
“I told the players after the game that if I see a player like that again, whether he’s been at the club for a long time or just joined as a new player, he won’t play,” he told PlymouthLive.
“In my opinion, you can lose football games, it happens, but you have to master the basics and make sure you run, tackle and get the ball and that wasn’t the case. The players know, they understand that they have to be fully there in every game.”
The Pilgrims open their account at Home Park on Wednesday evening when they host Cheltenham Town in the first round of the Carabao Cup.
They then welcome Hull City to the south coast on Saturday for their first league home game and will be keen to deliver a positive performance under a manager who is raising high expectations.
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