Exclusive: Don Goodman issues bleak Plymouth Argyle prediction | OneFootball

The EFL pundit struggles to see a world where the Pilgrims remain in the second tier next season

Former Sunderland man Don Goodman believes that Plymouth Argyle’s leaky defence will stop the Greens from mounting a survival bid this season.

The Pilgrims have by far the worst numbers for goals conceded in the Championship this season, with the Home Park outfit letting in 77 goals from their 38 games, 15 more than any other side.

Under Wayne Rooney and Miron Muslic, Argyle have found stopping the opposition their Achilles heel during the current campaign, with second tier sides able to carve through them seemingly at will, especially on their travels.

With six points to make up in the battle against the drop, Goodman is far from optimistic about their survival hopes in the coming weeks, with a drop down to the third tier expected.

Don Goodman predicts Plymouth Argyle relegation after defensive woes continue

Argyle are conceding over two goals per game as it stands, with their most recent 3-2 defeat to Derby County a key indicator as to why.

The Greens failed to deal with long balls into their penalty area on two separate occasions against the Rams, with Marcus Harness and Harrison Armstrong gifted goals in the opening half hour, leaving the hosts with a mountain to climb from the get-go.

That has been a recurring theme throughout the season for the Pilgrims, with regular trouncings on the road in the Rooney era, as Sheffield Wednesday, Norwich, Bristol City and Cardiff all put four goals or more on the scoreboard.

With just 40 goals scored at the other end, the Devon outfit aren’t helping their cause at either end of the pitch right now, with Goodman confident they won’t be able to mount another survival bid, as they did last season.

Speaking exclusively to FLW, the EFL pundit said: “Plymouth Argyle are simply a team that have really struggled defensively, struggled away from home, and struggled to score enough goals.

“So all around it has been a really difficult season for Plymouth Argyle, but the defensive numbers almost give you no chance of survival.

“They are struggling, eight games to go, they have won one of their last seven games and taken five points form those seven games, yet they are six points short of the dotted line.

“It would be one of the most miraculous escapes if they were to pull it off, but unfortunately, they are probably at this stage - with eight games to go - the one team I would be reasonably confident in predicting the future for, and that is going to be League One.”

Plymouth Argyle’s changing backline hasn’t helped defensive issues

Argyle were something of a sitting duck under Rooney, there is no two ways about it, with the reversion to four at the back leaving the Pilgrims exposed time and time again during the first-half of the season.

The former Birmingham City boss failed to learn from his mistakes, but also wasn’t helped by some key absences throughout the season, just like Muslic has experienced of late.

Brendan Galloway has been ruled out for the season, while Joe Edwards is only just returning from a lengthy spell on the sidelines, as well as Kornel Szucz and Julio Pleguezuelo’s fitness also causing concern.

The sale of Lewis Gibson to Preston North End only exacerbated matters, with Victor Palsson experiencing something of a renaissance to his Argyle career in the new year, having been relegated to fourth or fifth choice in the early part of the season.

Nikola Katic and Maxi Talovierov [pictured] were brought in during the January transfer window, as well as Tymoteusz Puchacz, with Muslic favouring a back three with wing-backs after his appointment at the start of 2025.

While that swapping and changing seemed to help initially - with Premier League leaders Liverpool among those to be shutout in the FA Cup - the Greens have reverted to the norm of late, with cheap goals being gifted to the opposition on a regular basis.

The news that Maxi has returned from international duty with a knee injury could only worsen matters between now and the end of the season, with players dropping like flies as Argyle’s plight continues.

Goodman is pessimistic about the Pilgrims’ potential to save themselves, and if they can’t sort things out at the back the chance of survival is almost nonexistent, with sides almost starting the 90 minutes with a goal head-start.