The Voice - Match preview #18: Plymouth Argyle vs Bradford City Saturday 6th December 2025 12:30pm

It’s letting all our midfielders down ! Patto and Leigh’s wonder goals are thin in the ground.

I think that’s where we will be looking in the next 8 weeks ?

 

I feared him but absolutely no surety he’d have scored .

 

Like all stats you can often manipulate and select them to say what you want, yes he had 3 shots but they were all outside the area with 2 off target and 1 was blocked, the total xG of the 3 shots was 0.086 so they weren't good chances. In the league this season he's had 11 shots with 0 on target

One stat missed off that post is his passing which like most of the team was awful, he ended up with only 13 complete passes from 21. This is the map of his passes and most of his passes were sideways or backwards (the map is based on us shooting right to left), 50% of his incomplete passes ended up out of play.

 

I’m not moaning (appreciate you may be referring to others!)

 

Maybe its just a case of when teams to come after us we look a better side and when teams jyst sit in then we dont look so clever
Look at the start and i bet the majority of teams came at us playing into our hands and thats why we looked so good ...............still it now causes oppo managers another issue that sitting in against us is not working either going on the last 2 games

 

I'd rather he shoot than didnt.

The volley was a bit opportunist, the other shoot was wild but he was right to shoot, no way could he pass to Wright with two defenders in the way. Just needs to snatch less at his shots.

 

I’m not sure his 3 shots are put on there as some kind of brag, anyone who knows football can see he’s a holding midfielder and not an attacking one. Cullen got one goal for us and it was off his shin from a yard out so not really a stick to beat him with. As for his passing, whilst not the best it’s still slightly above what the team averaged in terms of passing accuracy. We aren’t a possession based team, who are readily available for each other so I wouldn’t expect it to be high. I bet in a Bolton his average would be mid 80s or higher, the team a player plays in can often dictate a stat like that. So you’re right it can be misleading.

 

I think we were so brilliantly prepared during pre-season that we caught out a lot of teams that were still coming to the boil. I don't think we've been figured out in the last month, more like caught up in terms of physicality. It may be that we headed into a natural trough of our own as other teams were hitting their stride. Hopefully, we'll get a second wind as others go through an inevitable downturn.

 

I agree totally and have to disagree with GA if that's the criteria he has for his main striker!
Then again, we all know Alexander does have a bolshy side and a stubbornness about him (which isn't necessarily a problem) so not really surprised

 

We do and it is a great achievement with the players we have. If we can bring in some very good loans as @Offcomedun has said it really will push us on. What I like about the squad every single one of them pulls out all the stops when playing, it might not be good enough but they are all grafters and we as fans appreciate their endeavours. As you say despite our limitations we are still in second place with half the season gone. How many would have expected that at the start of the season?

 

Notably Plymouth won tonight, as did Exeter, two teams who we narrowly beat recently. Good to grind out those two results!

 

It looks like the yellow card against Lincoln never existed, no idea how or why there was a yellow card for him down for that game.

With yesterday being postponed it does open it up for him to get a yellow card in each of the next 2 games and get Christmas off. Unless he's going to go a long time without 2 yellow cards we really could do with him getting the 2 by Mansfield at the latest so we don't miss him for 1 or 2 of the matches against Cardiff, Huddersfield, Lincoln or Luton.

Saturday is our cut off point and nobody is on 4 so nobody at risk of getting to 5 yellows and getting a 1 game ban.