Plymouth Argyle: Blackburn Rovers talk will have the Green Army unsettled | OneFootball

Ibrahim Cissoko is said to be a target for Blackburn Rovers this month

Ibrahim Cissoko’s future as a Plymouth Argyle player has been thrown into jeopardy over recent days, with rumours arising of a move away from Home Park for the Dutchman.

According to transfer fanatic Alan Nixon, fellow Championship side Blackburn Rovers are interested in bringing the Toulouse FC loanee to Ewood Park for the remainder of the campaign, as John Eustace looks to bolster his side’s options in the final third.

While Argyle reportedly have first refusal on Cissoko should an offer come in for him this winter, the most prominent question is whether the Pilgrims will want the forward to remain at Home Park for the next few months, given the change of management in recent weeks.

With Wayne Rooney’s emphasis on playing free-flowing football being replaced by the more attritional style of Miron Muslic, it remains unclear how Cissoko will be fitting into those plans going forward, with a parting of ways potentially the best option during the transfer window.

Blackburn Rovers eye up move for Ibrahim Cissoko

Nixon’s report on Wednesday stated that Rovers are considering a move for Cissoko this winter, with the Netherlands under-21 international struggling to get game time after returning from injury at the start of the month.

If Cissoko does move to Lancashire, he would follow in the footsteps of former teammate Adam Forshaw, who made the move back to the north west earlier in the month after having his contract at Home Park cancelled by mutual consent.

Just like the former Leeds United man, Cissoko has had his supporters and his detractors during his time in green, with his flair and unpredictability on the left-hand side proving too hot to handle on occasion, while also leaving Janners gesticulating at his carelessness in possession.

With three goals this season - including a brace against Luton Town back in September - the 21-year-old has proven he can be quite the menace when given the opportunity to thrive in a team that allows him to do so, but with the changing of the guard in PL2, those chances are likely to be fewer and farther between if he remains as a Pilgrim past February 3.

Miron Muslic appointment may have ended Ibrahim Cissoko's Plymouth Argyle career

Miron Muslic has not wasted anytime in letting his players, the Green Army, and the football world what he expects since taking over the reins at Home Park earlier this year, with the Austrian demanding aggression, physicality, and a consistently high work-ethic across the board from everyone that crosses the white line in green each week.

This new-look Argyle side will be compact and will stick to their task in and out of possession, with grafters like Callum Wright and Mustapha Bundu likely to be preferred to the enigmatic Cissoko; a player that you don’t know which version you are going to get week on week.

You can get the star who tore the Hatters apart at Home Park in one game, and then the liability against Sheffield Wednesday, who could barely track back to help out his defensive line in another, and in their predicament right now, that is not a risk that Muslic, and Argyle, seem to be willing to take.

Not only that, but in the current formation, it is hard to see where Cissoko would fit in going forward, with a central striker being flanked by two more central attacking midfielders, rather than the single central outlet and two wide men that Rooney utilised in his time at the club.

As a result, the wing-backs are the players to provide the width going forward more often than not, leaving Cissoko very much a square peg trying to force through an ever-decreasing round hole, as his place in the squad looks considerably less likely than at the start of the season.

While a lack of fitness after returning from injury will have played a part, ineffective cameos since the start of the year haven’t helped the Dutchman’s cause when it comes to a recall to the starting lineup, while Morgan Whittaker’s departure also points towards a change intact from the Devon outfit going forward.

With Muslic hinting at getting more bodies in the door between now and the transfer deadline, there will be more and more question marks surrounding Cissoko’s future at the club, and it is getting harder and harder to make a case for him in the second-half of the campaign.

It is easy to be blinded by the bamboozling footwork that can leave a defender for dead on the odd occasion, and forget the lack of cohesion he adds to a team overall, and right now it is the latter that Argyle need. The flair can wait for now, functionality comes first.

There is no denying his ability, and he could well make it at the top level in the future, but for Plymouth Argyle he is the right player at the wrong time, with the out of possession work just as important as what they do with the ball, which is where Cissoko just cannot be trusted.

You are only as strong as your weakest link, and if one player doesn’t follow the game plan out of possession, the whole pan comes tumbling down. This is very much a case of team over individual, with the decision on Cissoko’s future likely to define Argyle’s season one way or the other.