Plymouth Argyle head coach Tom Cleverley is hoping to use the FA Cup to kick-start their season after falling into the League One relegation zone in recent weeks.
The 36-year-old was brought in in the summer to replace Miron Muslic, who departed suddenly for 2.Bundesliga outfit Schalke. The Pilgrims had just suffered relegation from the Championship and were targeting a swift return to the second tier.
Cleverley arrived with a big reputation after the stellar job he did at Watford. He was harshly dismissed by the Hornets at the beginning of May in a decision which angered supporters at the time.
His time at Home Park hasn’t gotten off to the best of starts. The Pilgrims lost their first 4 league games of the season and travel to League One rivals Wycombe Wanderers in the FA Cup first round on the back of 3 successive defeats.
Cleverley Under Pressure But Receives Backing
Early season form suggests that Plymouth are more likely to be involved in a relegation battle than a promotion charge. They currently sit within the bottom 4 and pressure is already near boiling point on the under-fire head coach.
We all recognise our very disappointing start to the season.
As a club, we need stability, and Tom Cleverley retains our full backing as Head Coach.
A message from Chief Executive, Paul Berne. 🗣️
— Plymouth Argyle FC (@Argyle) October 29, 2025
“We are a quarter of the way into Tom’s first season with us. Whilst results have been disappointing, nothing has changed in terms of Tom being the right person for this club. We need to bring that stability throughout the club, and this comes from Head Coach downwards.
“We are confident that things will improve. We’ve had a number of circumstances which have hit us in recent weeks, resulting in key players being missing throughout the opening 14 league games. This was emphasised last night, with Tom unable to fill the substitutes bench, and nine players being unavailable for selection, with the vast majority considered first-team starters.
“These are not excuses, but facts, and are clearly not ideal circumstances for any Head Coach to deliver consistent, winning performances. But, we believe Tom has all the tools to still deliver this.”
FA Cup Perfect Platform To Kick On
After losing 2-0 to Mansfield Town on Tuesday night, Cleverley knows he needs a result to get the fans back on side. He’s hoping that the FA Cup can provide that platform.
The boss on the importance of the @EmiratesFACup: 🗣️
— Plymouth Argyle FC (@Argyle) October 31, 2025
“I got to two finals, and I saw when I was at Villa, a cup run galvanised the club to improve in the league. [It was the] same here at Argyle last year, it almost had that same effect where a positive cup run galvanised the club and you saw that mirrored in the league form.
“First and foremost, it’s getting in that habit of winning football matches again.
“I think we’re a team who has won seven games this season. Granted, only four in the league, and that’s where we’ll be judged. But, because it’s cup week, we can look at the bigger picture. We’ve won seven games at the end of October. I’ve been in clubs and dressing rooms where it’s taken a lot longer to get there.
“But what we must not forget that we’ve lost nine. That’s far too many. And why we’re doing that starts with one priority and that’s being defensively and structurally more solid.
“Defensively, we need to improve – and that’s a unit thing. That’s not just our defenders. If you could aim a criticism at us as a team, it’s certainly that we’ve conceded too many chances this year. We’ve conceded soft goals this year.”
Plymouth’s trip to Adams Park kicks off tomorrow at 3:00pm and will be settled on the day, with extra time and penalties to be utilised if required.
