After Plymouth Argyle’s ’embarrassing’ 4-1 loss to Bristol City, Steven Schumacher apologizes.
Steven Schumacher, the manager of Plymouth Argyle, has apologized to the team’s supporters for the ’embarrassing’ 4-1 loss to Bristol City.
Infuriatingly losing for the fourth time in five games on Tuesday night was Plymouth Argyle. At Ashton Gate, the Pilgrims were defeated 4-1 by Bristol City, leaving a packed away end incensed.
Goals from Sam Bell and Matty James had the Robins 2-0 up within just eight minutes. Adam Randell pulled one back on 26 minutes but Mark Sykes restored the host’s two-goal lead shortly after. A Harry Cornick goal wrapped up the win for Bristol City in the latter stages.
Questions were asked of the selection before the game as Schumacher made seven changes to his starting XI but speaking to the club’s media team after the match, he explained that the switches were not the reason behind the heavy defeat.
He moved to apologise for the loss, saying:
“I’m sorry. It was a terrible performance, but a brilliant support again. I don’t know what happened. They were shouting: ‘it’s embarrassing’ – and it was embarrassing.
“I felt like saying the same thing. In fact, I did say the same thing at half-time.”
On the changes to the side, Schumacher later added:
“I understand that seven changes sound a lot, but four of the changes are [regular] starters. Dan Scarr’s played nearly every game since being here, Joe Edwards, Adam Randall, Callum Wright the same.
“There should be no drop off there. The three young lads having their first Championship appearance, I’ll take it from them if they have a tough night, but the other lads who have played all the time, then no, it’s not good enough.
“It’s no excuse that we have made seven changes. The players that are on there should be able to perform, and they didn’t.”
Next up for Plymouth Argyle
The Pilgrims will be determined to bounce back in their next outing, but they may well be up against it once again.
Norwich City are next up for Schumacher’s side, so they face an uphill battle in their bid to get back on track. The tie is at Home Park though, so they’ll be hopeful of maintaining their strong record there in front of the loyal and vocal supporters.
It’s been a tough run for Plymouth over the past five games but the 3-0 win over Blackburn Rovers is an example of just what they’re capable of at this level. There’s no doubt that they need to improve vastly on Tuesday night’s display though, as a team like Norwich could present some real threats.
The Canaries sit 4th in the Championship table with 13 points from six games. They face a tough game against Leicester City on Wednesday night.
