Tom Cleverley is facing new Plymouth Argyle nightmare involving Lorent Tolaj - £60k man needs to help save his job | OneFootball

Owen Oseni could help ease pressure on Tom Cleverley, as he stands in for Lorent Tolaj for Plymouth Argyle's next three fixtures.

With Lorent Tolaj suspended and Aribim Pepple unavailable through injury, the hopes of Plymouth Argyle and Tom Cleverley lie on the shoulders of Owen Oseni for their next three matches.

The Pilgrims made their Home Park return last Saturday against Northampton Town after a month of consecutive away matches, and were coming off the back of a victory over fellow strugglers Port Vale the previous week.

However, their homecoming couldn't have gone much worse if it tried. Not only did Argyle completely capitulate in the second half to lose out 3-0, with star striker Tolaj seeing a straight red card for elbowing his marker in the face off the ball.

This rubbed salt into an already gaping wound, as the 24-year-old has been the only player to find the net for Cleverley's side since September, leaving the struggling side without their key attacking outlet for at least the next three games.

Now, the hopes of the Green Army and Cleverley are on the shoulders of summer signing Oseni, who will lead the line for Plymouth whilst his two strike colleagues are unavailable through suspension and injury.

With the passing of every week, it seems Argyle are handed more and more setbacks which have seen tensions grow from supporters, and the pressure mount even further on the head coach and the playing squad.

Last week saw arguably the biggest blow that anyone connected with the club could possibly fathom, as top scorer Tolaj was shown a straight red card after his elbow on a Northampton defender, landing him a three-match ban.

It's fair to say that the Swiss striker has been the only player who the Pilgrims can rely on for goals this season, with his tally of eight league goals dwarfing the numbers that his teammates have conjured up so far this term.

Tolaj is the only Argyle player to score since late September, with the goals drying up for the rest of the squad, and without their star man, many Greens supporters are fearing the worst for their next three League One outings.

To give Cleverley even more problems, it was confirmed on Thursday that back-up striker Pepple would also be unavailable for selection in the immediate future, leaving just one out-and-out number nine at the 36-year-old's disposal.

That man is Oseni, who arrived in the summer from St Mirren for £60k. The 22-year-old is the second top scorer for the Pilgrims, with five goals in 17 outings, and will now have to step up to potentially help save his head coach's job.

Owen Oseni must step up in Tolaj's absence — he could help save Tom Cleverley's job

Whilst Cleverley has been continuously backed by the people above him, that support will only last as long as the former Watford man picks up results on a fairly consistent basis ahead of the January transfer window.

Some supporters have already written off their chances in the next three matches, as they face high-flying Bradford City, followed by a trip to an in-form Wycombe Wanderers side, and the visit of the ever-improving Rotherham United.

Despite this tough run without their number nine, there is no reason to write Argyle off before a ball has been kicked. It's the perfect time for squad players, such as Oseni, to step up and announce to Cleverley that he's a reliable option to fill in up front.

Whilst all goals have dried up in the last few months, the Irishman has proven to have a strong eye for goal earlier in the season, and will gobble up the chances should he be provided with sufficient service from those around him, especially with Xavier Amaechi expected to return to the side to face Bradford.

If Oseni is able to step into Tolaj's shoes and break his goalscoring duct, there's no reason why Plymouth can't secure a few positive results in their next three matches, which will go a long way towards keeping the pressure off Cleverley.

There's no denying that the suspension of Tolaj is a massive blow for the Pilgrims based on recent evidence, but Oseni will see this as a huge opportunity to send a message to his head coach, and potentially help him survive until January.