The Local Lowdown: Plymouth Argyle

This is Plymouth’s first season back in the Championship since 2009/10. How have they handled the step up so far?

Pretty well I would say. It has been a very big step up from League One, even though Argyle picked up 101 points in winning the title last term. Every game has been so intense and they have had to be at 100 percent, or very close to it, to get any positive results. The Pilgrims have quite a young squad, with not too much Championship experience within it, so they have been learning as they have gone along but going into today's game they are 16th in the table with 28 points from 24 games so that is a decent position for them to be in.

How big a surprise was the departure of Steven Schumacher to Stoke last week, and how did the club and fanbase view his decision to leave for a team below Argyle in the table?

It all happened quite suddenly but it was probably going to happen sooner or later – everyone at the club had just hoped it would be a bit later! Steven Schumacher's record at Argyle was outstanding. His 51 victories from 94 league games leaves him with the highest win percentage of any Argyle manager in club history. It was only a matter of time before another club snapped him up. There was definitely widespread disappointment he left for Stoke, a team currently below them in the table, but the Potters have better facilities and financial resources than Argyle to be able to eventually challenge for a place in the Premier League.

The departure of popular boss Steven Schumacher to Stoke leaves Plymouth without a manager for their visit to St Mary's

Since then, Argyle have drawn 3-3 at home to Birmingham and 2-2 away to Cardiff. Has anything changed in the tactical approach post-Schumacher?

Director of football Neil Dewsnip has taken interim charge of first team duties with long-serving coach Kevin Nancekivell. It was very much business as usual against Birmingham in terms of their approach but for the Boxing Day match at Cardiff they switched from the 4-3-3 formation which Schumacher had favoured this season to a 3-4-3 setup, with the aim of trying to make them more solid defensively while still posing a threat on the counter-attack.

Only five of Plymouth’s 28 points have come on the road. Why such contrasting fortunes away from Home Park?

Argyle have made Home Park a very difficult place for opposition sides to play at. The capacity is only around 16,500 but there is always a very partisan atmosphere created by the Green Army. They have won 27 of their 35 home league games since the start of the 2022/23 season. Their attacking style of play under Schumacher has suited them well in front of their own fans. Schumacher also tried to stick to those principles for away games but they were repeatedly punished for defensive mistakes or lapses of concentration.

Only Ipswich have scored more home goals than Plymouth this season, but the Pilgrims are still yet to win on the road

Which players have impressed so far this season, and who should Saints be wary of?

Someone Russell Martin knows well – Morgan Whittaker. The 22-year-old did not get many opportunities at Swansea City under the Saints boss but he has been outstanding for Argyle, both on loan over the first half of last season and then after completing a £1million transfer (a joint club record) in July. He has scored 12 Championship goals in 23 starts and one substitute appearance this season and only Sammie Szmodics at Blackburn Rovers has more than that. On-loan Aston Villa midfielder Finn Azaz has come up with valuable goals and assists too.

What do you expect from Friday's game?

Southampton will be in buoyant mood after the Boxing Day win against Swansea so Argyle will be well aware of the size of the task facing them. They will need to try to avoid any of those defensive mistakes and lapses of concentration I mentioned earlier, stay in the game and look to Whittaker to cause Saints some problems on the counter-attack.