"It will take between six and seven years" - Plymouth Argyle, Premier League claim issued | OneFootball

FLW's Plymouth Argyle fan pundit has examined what Argyle will have to do to reach the Premier League, explaining investment will be the key.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Plymouth Argyle have experienced recent success and have had a sustainable tenure under Simon Hallett as a football club, but they're yet to achieve the end goal. The Premier League.

An ambition for every Championship side is to reach the golden gates of the Premier League.

Argyleoutlined a five-year-plan last year detailing this ambition. Chairman Hallett and his staff presented the new strategy in a meeting detailing what factors will need to be taken into account.

The statement was posted on the club website in November 2023, with the main line taken away from the statement being: ‘To be a sustainable top six Championship club within five years, with Premier League aspirations.’

An ambitious dream, but is it achievable?

"It will take between six and seven years" - Argyle claim over reaching the Premier League

FLW's Plymouth Argyle fan pundit, Chris, has determined that it is possible, but investment is the key.

Chris said: "Argyle's ambition to get to the Premier League within five years, was set out in a club statement last year.

"This is something which, when we moved up into the Championship, we were very keen to aim for. A lot of fans are hopeful that we'll move into that position.

"I personally believe that it will take longer than five years for Argyle to make the next step-up to the Premier League. "The reason being, is we require further investment in the club. Although Simon Hallett has been a credit to the club, and has put a lot of time and effort into managing it and bringing it up to one of the most financially sustainable clubs in the Championship, the club does require further investment in order to expand and invest in new talent coming into the squad. "This will allow us to have more competitive transfer windows, and sign players who have a lot more Championship and Premier League experience. "Once we have that experience on board, we will hopefully then move up to the dizzying heights of Premier League football and, as such, the investment to go along with it.

"I believe it will take between six and seven years to reach this level as the investment might take a long time to develop, and we need to claim a strong foothold in the Championship first, rather than battling down at the bottom end of the table.

It will take far longer for Argyle to reach this goal

Argyle have always been a team flirting between the lower end of the Championship and the higher status in League One.

The top flight is an ambitious step to take and one that is probably perceived as unlikely.

Since Hallett joined Argyle in 2016, the club has been a sort of yo-yo going from League Two and the Championship over the past eight years.

It's difficult to believe this plan after the club's inconsistency throughout the leagues. Although investment has been good, there would need to be a drastic push to achieve their goal in five years.

Many have tipped Argyle to go down following the appointment of Wayne Rooney, who failed at Birmingham City, and Rooney's life in Devon hasn't started off brilliantly, as the Pilgrims boss is yet to secure a win in the Championship, whilst sitting 22nd.

Although early days, Argyle's squad in itself doesn't seem up to the standard of the Championship.

If relegation was to happen, the five-year plan would take a serious hit, and with the likelihood of that happening, it may not prove to be as easy as just investing in the club.

Hallett's heart is in the right place for the club, but their ambition might take a little longer than five years.