Wayne Rooney praised Plymouth’s grit and resilience as he guided them to a rare away point on his first return to Pride Park since resigning as Derby manager.
The former England and Manchester United centre-forward spent an eventful 17 months in charge of the hosts from November 2020, preserving their Championship status against the odds during his first season at the helm before a mammoth points deduction condemned them to relegation the following year.
County, who took the lead through Jerry Yates’ spectacular eighth-minute strike, dominated for long periods. But Argyle held firm, equalising courtesy of Adam Randell’s deflected free-kick just before the break and defending resolutely from that moment on.
“I think it was a good professional performance,” Rooney said. “Especially after going behind so early on.
“With Derby being the best in the division from set-plays, we did really well. We played our way back in and got ourselves level.
“I thought we began well after the break and then had to show real character to stay in the game. So yes, I’m pleased with how we did.
“Fair play to Derby, they switched formation and we struggled to deal a little bit with that extra aggression it brought them. But we dug in and showed another side to our game, which was good to see.
“What we want to do now is get a little bit of momentum behind us. This is something we would like to try and build on and I believe we can.”
On loan from Swansea, Yates worked under Paul Warne at Rotherham. He repaid the faith County’s head coach has shown in his abilities by firing the hosts in front early on – powering an overhead free-kick beyond Daniel Grimshaw following Argyle’s inability to clear a corner.
Yates nearly extended County’s advantage soon after, guiding a header just wide of the post.
But Warne’s men paid the price for failing to translate their attacking superiority into a dominant lead on the scoreboard when Randell’s 41st-minute shot ricocheted off a defender and wrong footed Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.
Yates remained a threat and nearly converted another memorable effort just past the hour mark. Spotting that Grimshaw had advanced well off his line, the 27-year-old tried his luck from inside County’s half. Back-tracking frantically, the Argyle goalkeeper was able to turn the ball around an upright.
“I thought we dominated,” Warne said. “That’s the honest truth.
“We just needed that second goal and we didn’t get it. We lost two points off a free-kick that I thought was a bit charitable in the first place so it’s hard to be critical of the lads.
“We played in a different shape and were in the ascendancy in virtually all parts of the game but unfortunately the scoreline doesn’t show that.
“I try not to let the players sulk about it. If there is a lesson then it would be about the importance of getting that second goal. But I can’t be critical.
“Yes, we are judged by results and scorelines. But from a performance perspective I thought that we were great.
“I try not to let the players sulk about it. I get it, because I want to win every game too.
“But I really enjoyed watching us play and perform out there.”
[(FC Seoul) Strength]: 1. Marko Dugandzic, Anderson de Oliveira, and Yazan Al-Arab all contributed in the last friendly against Barcelona. The team's foreign players performed well on offense.2. FC Seoul won 1-0 over Daejeon Hana Citizen in the last league game, securing 3 wins in the last 4 league matches.[(FC Seoul) Neutral]: 1. FC Seoul had BTTS in 2 of the previous 3 games, showing a high like...
[(Los Angeles Galaxy) Strength]: 1. Los Angeles Galaxy currently rank 8th in Group B of the Leagues Cup. Facing Santos Laguna who are bottom 3rd in Group A, Los Angeles Galaxy are aiming for three points and are highly motivated.2. Los Angeles Galaxy forward Gabriel Chaves has scored 4 goals in the last 3 games, demonstrating a very high goal-scoring efficiency.3. Los Angeles Galaxy have remained ...
[(Cruz Azul) Strength]: 1. Cruz Azul's attacking methods are diverse and plentiful, including intricate passing from the midfield, crosses from flank breakthroughs, and long-range shots.[(Cruz Azul) Neutral]: 1. Both sides have never met before, so there were no records to reference.[(Cruz Azul) Weakness]: 1. Cruz Azul are 14th in the Leagues Cup Group Stable- Liga MX table. They were winless in t...
[(Estudiantes La Plata) Strength]: 1. Estudiantes La Plata beat Racing Club de Avellaneda in the last game, securing a 2-game winning streak in the league and showing a rebound in form.2. Estudiantes La Plata conceded 3 goals in the last 5 home games, boasting excellent defense at home.3. Estudiantes La Plata received 6 wins, 2 draws, and 2 losses in the last 10 home games, with a win rate of 60%....
[(Monterrey) Strength]: 1. Monterrey scored 7 goals in the previous 4 competitive games, averaging nearly 2 goals per game, which demonstrates outstanding attack.[(Monterrey) Weakness]: 1. Monterrey performed poorly in this edition of the Leagues Cup and have confirmed to miss the knockout stage. Thus, their motivation is in doubt.2. Monterrey were winless in two Leagues Cup games with only 1 draw...
[(FC Cincinnati) Strength]: 1. FC Cincinnati are ranked 2nd in the MLS Eastern Conference, showing outstanding overall form. They received 15 wins, 4 draws, and 6 losses in the regular season so far, with a win rate of 60%.2. FC Cincinnati were unbeaten in two Leagues Cup games so far, recording 1 win and 1 draw.3. FC Cincinnati showed excellent attack in the previous two Leagues Cup games, scorin...
[(Servette) Strength]: 1. Servette were narrowly defeated 3-2 on aggregate in two legs of the second qualifying round of this season's Champions League, and now they will unfortunately have to play in the Europa League qualification. This match will be the first leg of the third qualifying round at home, and they are highly motivated.2. Servette forward Slovakian Samuel Mraz is in fit form this se...
[(FC Bayern Munich) Strength]: 1. As the Bundesliga giants, FC Bayern Munich still aim to win the titles across all competitions this season. As a preseason warm-up tournament, FC Bayern Munich will adjust their form and fine-tune their squad in the Germany Telekom Cup. They are highly motivated to secure a big win to build confidence for the new season.2. In the summer window, FC Bayern Munich si...
[(Zrinjski Mostar) Strength]: 1. Zrinjski Mostar are undoubtedly motivated to win this home game to take the initiative of advancing.2. The Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which Zrinjski Mostar play, has not yet started, giving them more time to prepare for their European football matches.3. Zrinjski Mostar won 14 of the previous 20 home games across all competitions, showing decent h...
[(Panathinaikos) Strength]: 1. Panathinaikos are still in the league offseason and only focus on the Cup, revealing superior fitness.2. Panathinaikos performed impressively at home as they lost only one of the last 19 home matches.[(Panathinaikos) Neutral]: 1. As the traditional giants in the Super League Greece, Panathinaikos currently have a total squad value of over 100 million Euros.2. In Pana...
- 1 Bayern Munich confirm Palhinha "transfer negotiations" as Spurs move closer
- 2 TIPS - Real Salt Lake VS Atletico San Luis
- 3 TIPS - FCSB VS KF Drita Gjilan
- 4 Daily Laugh - Raya nair
- 5 TIPS - Lincoln Red Imps VS FC Noah
- 6 TIPS - Rigas Futbola Skola VS KuPS
- 7 Man Utd, Newcastle turn to Stuttgart striker Woltemade
- 8 PSG Willing to Sell Lucas Beraldo – But Only If Two Demands Are Met Amid Premier League Interest
- 9 TIPS - FC Kairat Almaty VS SK Slovan Bratislava
- 10 Transfer rumors, news: Chelsea face dilemma over Simons