Sky Sports pundit sends message to Wayne Rooney doubters at Plymouth Argyle | OneFootball

David Prutton spoke about Plymouth Argyle's season so far on the Essential EFL Podcast and had some strong messages for Pilgrims fans.

Sky Sports' EFL expert and former Nottingham Forest player David Prutton has urged the need for patience from the Plymouth Argyle fans, with their start to the campaign not as bad as it may seem.

Wayne Rooney's side have started with two points from their opening four fixtures, with battling performances against Hull City and Queens Park Rangers negated by disappointing defeats to Stoke City and Sheffield Wednesday.

Despite their position near the bottom of the table, they've demonstrated considerable attacking intent, with 31 shots across their two home games - hardly indicative of a team in crisis.

However, they will need to convert more of the chances they create with just two goals to their name for all their threat.

Meanwhile, the defence appears to be the biggest concern, with an expected goals conceded of 9.2 - far too high after only four fixtures.

Prutton urges Plymouth fans to give Rooney time

Speaking on the Essential EFL Podcast about the QPR game, Prutton said: "That was a game they were well involved in, and they completely shot themselves in the foot. You could see the frustration on Wayne Rooney's face as one of his more experienced players - Adam Forshaw steams in and gets a second yellow card after half an hour. You can't mitigate for that.

"It was a disastrous start to the season with the performance and result against Wednesday, but it is a team that has changed.

"They've brought Wayne in, who has been chastened by that Birmingham City experience, but did broadly well at Derby in extenuating circumstances with a team that went down. So, he will be as motivated as anyone else to prove he is the right man for this job."

Speaking about the Pilgrims' ambitions, the former Owls player continued that Plymouth have to consolidate first before they can expect high-end finishes in the league.

Prutton added: "I have seen bits of Plymouth I really like, I have seen bits of Plymouth where you would be concerned, from a goals conceding point of view, but I don't quite know that Wayne has got as many of his ideas across as he needs to. That's where I feel you have to be a little bit patient.

Plymouth could be in for a long season under Rooney

It is hard to disagree with Prutton on this one. While Rooney's side have shown glimpses so far this season, they have often been let down by lapses in concentration or silly mistakes across the pitch.

With the Pilgrims working on one of the smallest budgets in the league, they will have to largely outperform expectations if they're to survive this campaign. For that reason, ensuring you are solid behind the ball and aren't giving needless opportunities away is of the utmost importance.

But, their primary goal at the moment has to be picking up that first league win as it will provide a platform for Rooney to build on. His possession-based style of football will only be affirmed if they start picking up regular points, which isn't easy in such a competitive division.

Time will tell whether Rooney has the qualities needed to keep Plymouth up. If he manages it, it would be the greatest achievement of his managerial career so far and the revival he desperately needs.