3 things we learnt about Plymouth Argyle after their 2-0 loss v Port Vale | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle failed to make the most of their opportunities last night as they fell to a disappointing 2-0 defeat against Port Vale yesterday evening, nearly knocking them off top spot in League One.

The hosts nearly fell behind early on with a lively Daniel Butterworth testing Michael Cooper twice, with the Valiants making a promising start to the game despite coming into this clash as the clear underdogs.

In fairness to the Pilgrims, they had a golden chance to take the lead shortly before the half-hour mark when an error from Jack Stevens gave Morgan Whittaker a chance to place the ball into an empty net, but it was an opportunity the Swansea City loanee snatched at as he rushed his finish, with Bali Mumba and Ryan Hardie also missing good chances before the interval.

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And it looked as though those missed chances would prove to be costly, with a Vale header deflecting in off James Wilson to put the visitors 1-0 up in the 65th minute.

Wilson then doubled the visitors’ lead just over five minutes later when his turn and shot managed to find its way past Michael Cooper, sealing the Pilgrims’ first league defeat at home this season.

Following this clash, we have listed three things we clearly learnt about the home side following their defeat.

They were at their best at a high tempo

When the hosts were playing a bit of tempo, that’s when they looked at their most dangerous and that was partly because Mumba was able to be more effective.

The Norwich City loanee didn’t have his best game, giving the ball away on numerous occasions, but he was still lively and was unlucky not to get himself on the scoresheet last night.

If they can play at a reasonable pace consistently from now until the end of the season, they will have a real chance of retaining their place in the promotion mix despite nearly falling to second place.

They have Fleetwood Town to thank for securing a last-minute equaliser against Ipswich Town.

They need to be more ruthless in front of goal in their quest for promotion

Whittaker, Mumba and Hardie all had excellent chances in the first half and the fact one wasn’t stuck away was a real blow because they needed an opener to wrestle momentum in the opening 45.

Although the hosts arguably had the better chances in the opening half, the visitors were arguably the better team considering how well they pressed in Argyle’s half and the opportunities they were able to carve out for themselves.

A goal or two would have settled nerves but their inability to take their opportunities meant the game could have gone either way at the interval – and that’s disappointing considering they were the clear favourites to win all three points.

In the end, they were punished for their lack of ruthlessness with Niall Ennis squandering a hat-trick of second-half chances.

They need to make a better start to games

Although Argyle had their chances to win all three points, the visitors must have taken real confidence from the fact they had a few opportunities early on to test Cooper, who was kept busy in the hosts’ goal at that point.

And that probably gave the away side real hope that they could continue to press high in the hosts’ half, something that gave Steven Schumacher’s side real problems as they looked to pass their way into dangerous positions, struggling against the press.

Even in the second 45, the visitors stayed up high and continued to try and threaten when were 2-0 up, something Darrell Clarke’s men should be given a lot of credit for considering how much of a threat the home team can be in attack.

They were fortunate at times with those missed opportunities in the first half and Ennis’ chances after the second goal – but they made their own luck.