Plymouth Argyle manager Wayne Rooney has given his verdict on Sunderland ahead of this weekend’s game.
Sunderland and Plymouth Argyle meet at Home Park this weekend.
It’s back-to-back trips to the south coast for the Black Cats, who last beat Portsmouth 3-1 at Fratton Park.
The win extended Sunderland’s perfect start to the 2024/25 season, with Regis Le Bris’ side currently sitting 1st in the Championship table.
Sunderland have won 12 points out of a possible 12 compared to Plymouth who have won just two out of 12 and are currently in 22nd place.
Wayne Rooney manages Plymouth.
After his struggles at Birmingham City last season, where he played 15 games and won just two, he takes on another job in the Championship.
Le Bris, meanwhile, is only in his second job as a manager. But the Frenchman is receiving huge praise from Sunderland fans for his newfound energy and focus in attack.
Plymouth Argyle manager Wayne Rooney has slammed Sunderland
Rooney spoke to reporters this week as his team returned to action.
Sunderland have had several players on international duty this month and while Le Bris has not hinted at any new injury concerns, Rooney may be hoping his side have some insight into fitness.
That and Plymouth have several older players who bring a bit more experience to the squad, while Sunderland are still a very young team.
And Rooney hinted at some possible weaknesses in Sunderland’s ranks ahead of the weekend.
He said: “Sunderland are a very young team, a very energetic team, but there are definitely weaknesses that we can try to exploit to try and win.
“They were a clinical team. If you watch them against Sheffield Wednesday, they had four chances and scored four goals.
“Sometimes that’s the difference. From our perspective, we definitely see that they have some strengths there, but we also see that they have parts of their game that aren’t as strong and we can try to take advantage of them.”
Two of Sunderland’s weaknesses may be apparent against Plymouth Argyle
Sunderland have yet to make a mistake under Le Bris.
They were clinical in attack and resolute at the back, so it remains to be seen what weaknesses Rooney cites.
But Rooney may be referring to the Black Cats’ lack of first-team experience and perhaps a slight lack of physicality in the side.
Plymouth have some more experienced professionals in their ranks and boast a bit more physicality, so Rooney may want this to be a real physical battle.
This could be his side’s best effort as Sunderland look dangerous at the moment but Plymouth don’t.