Ipswich Town never felt what Plymouth Argyle did with international star: View | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle are currently fighting for their lives in the Championship in their first season back in the second tier since 2010.

The Pilgrims sacked head coach Ian Foster last week after a run of just one win in 11 league games, with the Scouser's reign being one of the shortest in the league this season.

He had taken over from previous manager Steven Schumacher, who after winning League One with Plymouth last season left in December to take up the vacancy at Stoke City.

Plymouth had been playing in the third tier for three seasons after promotion from League Two in 2020 as they pursued a spot back in the Championship after over a decade away.

The season before they went up they narrowly missed out on the play-offs, and one of the key players behind that push for the top six was central midfielder Panutche Camara.

Camara excelled in his time at Plymouth, but after leaving for Ipswich Town in the summer of 2022, he has failed to kick on in his career.

Camara joined Argyle in August 2020 following his depature from Crawley Town, having turned down a new contract with the Red Devils.

Schumacher, who was only assistant to Ryan Lowe when Camara arrived in Devon, said that the Guinea-Bissau international was always someone of interest to him, saying: "He was somebody that I was really really keen to try and bring to the club because being a midfield player, I was always saying to (former Argyle manager) Ryan (Lowe) 'he would be my worst nightmare to ever play against in midfield' because he's got these long legs, you think you've got the ball and he just takes it off you.”

Schumacher’s description was spot on. His size, along with his ball-winning ability and the way he can manage to get out of the tightest of spaces in the middle of the park, made him a formidable opponent for the opposition.

Across his two seasons at Home Park, Camara made 95 appearances in all competitions, scoring 10 goals and providing 10 assists too.

After talks for a new and improved contract had been going on for a number of months, Camara’s representatives told Plymouth that he would not be signing a new contract at Home Park, and he was subsequently made available for transfer.

This led to his move to Ipswich, joining them for a reported fee of £500,000 on a deal until 2024 in what was seen by many as a real coup for the League One promotion chasers.

Panutche Camara looks set to leave Ipswich Town this summer after not kicking on

Unfortunately for Camara, he has failed to impress at Ipswich amid injury problems.

His first season was initially affected by a groin injury, but after coming back, he suffered another injury to the same area which required surgery, which went on to keep him out for the rest of the season - this limited him to just four appearances.

Following Ipswich’s promotion to the Championship, game-time was set to be limited due to the presence of Sam Morsy and Massimo Luongo in the middle of the park, which led him to join Charlton Athletic on loan.

Injury has affected his campaign with the Addicks once more though, with a hamstring issue causing him to miss large parts of the season.

Injuries or not though, Camara has struggled to emulate the sort of form he showcased at Plymouth with Ipswich, and it now looks extremely likely he will leave on a free transfer in the summer once his contract expires.

A League One club will likely take a punt on Camara, and at the age of 27 there can still be a top third tier player if he can be kept fit - from what we have seen over the last two seasons though, it is easier said than done.