Chris Errington, The Herald and Plymouth Live: Where it went wrong for Rooney at Argyle | OneFootball

Following good initial signs under Wayne Rooney, Chris Errington, football journalist for The Herald and Plymouth Live, has explained when things started to take a downward turn at Argyle.

The former Manchester United and England striker was appointed by the Championship outfit in the summer but departed the Pilgrims by mutual consent on New Year's Eve following a nine-game winless run, with Kevin Nancekivell currently in caretaker charge for Saturday's FA Cup third-round tie against Brentford at Gtech Community Stadium.

Plymouth are bottom of the Championship with only four wins on the board so far, and Wayne Rooney has just been sacked, too. What have you made of the season so far?

Well, there was quite a bit of excitement going into the season because of the appointment of Wayne Rooney, who is an absolute world star of football. People were excited and hopeful that he could come down to Plymouth and make his mark - and, initially, the signs were good.

Yes, they did lose 4-0 at Sheffield Wednesday on the first day of the season and maybe, in hindsight, that was an indicator of things to come.

But by the middle of October, they were 14th in the table and closer to the play-off places than the relegation zone so, going into the second international break of the season in the middle of October, I think most people were pretty happy with the way things were going.

After that second international break in November, they went to Cardiff and got beaten 5-0. That was the start of the slippery slope, which culminated in Rooney losing his job after the 2-0 defeat at Oxford on the Sunday after Christmas.

So, within two months, what looked like being a pretty decent start to the season, ended up with them bottom of the table and without a manager.

Though the first half of the season has not gone well on the whole, Plymouth are only three points from safety. Would you say there is still hope they can get out of the current situation?

They have got 21 league games to play, so there are a lot of points up for grabs, but January is going to be vital to their chances of staying up.

One, because they need to appoint a new manager - and I think that will happen before Saturday.

Two, we are in the transfer window and they are going to need to strengthen the squad so the new manager has the best chance possible to get them out of the bottom three.

As we are here now, the only objective for the rest of the season is to finish 21st or above. Whoever comes in, that is the job: get them to 21st or above, and then try and regroup in the summer and go from there.

It has been a tough time for the fans. The results have not been good, so I am not sure how optimistic they are.

Of course, they will be hopeful the team stays up, but it has been a bad run. They have not won an away game since April and they have had some really heavy defeats on the road this season, which has definitely eroded the confidence of not only the players but the fans as well.

Bringing it to Saturday’s game, do you think an FA Cup run would help build momentum for the league or hinder Plymouth?

It is a difficult one with the FA Cup. As fans, we all want to see our teams do well in the competition. Winning games of football is a good habit to be in and Argyle have not won enough games recently, so going to Brentford and getting a win there would be good for them.

But the obvious main objective is staying up and, with the amount of fixtures you play in the Championship, a cup run does cause you even more fixture congestion.

For example, after the game against Brentford, Argyle have got three home games in eight days, on the 14th, the 18th and the 22nd - and then you potentially throw in a fourth-round tie as well.

I am sure, come 3pm on Saturday, the team Argyle put out will be doing their utmost to get a win, but the league status is so important that I'm sure, if you offered most Argyle fans either a win at home to Oxford next Tuesday or a win at Brentford in the cup, they would take the win against Oxford.

That is a shame because we all love the FA Cup, but I think that is the reality.

Which player should Brentford fans be keeping an eye out for at the weekend?

It has got to be Morgan Whittaker. He has not hit the same heights that he did last season - when he got 19 goals in the Championship and 20 in total - but, as a goal threat, he still remains one of Argyle’s best chances of scoring goals.

He has got a terrific left foot, which I think everybody knows now, and if Argyle can work him into shooting positions in and around the penalty area, he is very good at hitting the target.

It is interesting that, in the last game at Stoke, they played him in a more central position rather than wide on the right.

That has just given him a little bit more freedom to roam around in central positions and try and pick up pockets of space, rather than being out on the right and cutting in on his left foot.

It is just something that they have done a little bit differently in the last couple of games, though it has not led to him scoring in either of those.

What should Brentford expect in terms of shape and style from Plymouth?

That is a little bit up in the air depending on the new manager situation. Since Wayne Rooney left, they have played a 3-4-2-1, with Whittaker and Rami Al Hajj playing behind the main striker.

They drew both of the first two games after Wayne Rooney left: 2-2 at home to Bristol City and 0-0 at Stoke, so you could say that formation has worked pretty well and there is every chance they might stick with that.

A new manager could come in and change it, but I cannot imagine they would want to change too much too soon if they have just come through the door. They will play with three centre-backs, but that can easily become five across the back if they need it to.

What's your score prediction for the first meeting in just under 14 years?

Argyle have not won an away game all season, so it would be typical football and the glory of the FA Cup if they went to an in-form Premier League club and won 2-1!