Plymouth Argyle will have mixed feelings over Leeds United player news: View | OneFootball

Darko Gyabi’s time at Plymouth Argyle is over after the Leeds United loanee suffered a groin strain in training.

The England youth international will now return to his parent club for treatment, with the injury set to rule him out for the rest of the season.

The 20-year-old featured ten times for the club after making the loan move from Elland Road in January, as he linked up with former England U19 boss Ian Foster at Home Park.

After a strong start to life as a Pilgrim, performances had tailed off somewhat before the international break, although that could be said for much of the team as Argyle sleepwalk towards relegation.

Darko Gyabi injury update

Gyabi’s training ground injury is said to need surgery as part of his recovery, with the Greens reporting the news ahead of Good Friday’s clash with Norwich City at Carrow Road.

The Manchester City youth product joined the club in January as a replacement in the centre of midfield for the departing Finn Azaz and Luke Cundle, with both players being recalled from their respective loans.

With big boots to fill, Gyabi offered a calm influence as he tried to link defence and attack in his early showings in green, with a draw against Huddersfield Town followed up with victories over Cardiff City and Swansea City in his first three appearances.

It has been a tough ride for both player and club since then though, with just one win in their last nine matches seeing the gap between themselves and the bottom three slowly reducing.

That one victory came away at Middlesbrough, which many would say was Gyabi’s standout performance as an Argyle player, with Foster masterminding a 2-0 victory away at The Riverside; just their second win on the road this season.

The 20-year-old had a big part to play in both goals that day, with his effort from the edge of the area parried into the path of Matty Sorinola for the opener, before his clinical through ball set Ryan Hardie away to double the advantage just after the half hour mark.

From then on it has been quite the grind at Home Park, with home defeats against Ipswich Town and Preston North End leaving them looking lacklustre in attack, while the less said about the loss against relegation rivals Sheffield Wednesday the better.

Gyabi’s minutes have petered out during this time, and has failed to finish the 90 minutes more often than not, while his last appearance in a 1-1 draw against Blackburn Rovers saw him limited to just 20 minutes off the bench.

Plymouth Argyle selection problems ahead of Championship run-in

Although Argyle fans may not have taken to the Leeds United loanee all that much, his absence creates an even wider chasm in the centre of the park, with squad depth becoming more and more of an issue for Foster as we head into the final reaches of the season.

With Gyabi ruled out, the Pilgrims will have to rely heavily on Adam Randell to help with the quick transitions to form attacks, while Alfie Devine may find himself recalled after being overlooked in recent weeks.

WIth Morgan Whittaker’s [pictured] goals drying up since the turn of the year and the Argyle’s attacking force as whole looking a lot less potent than when the season began, the loss of another attacking outlet could only go to hamper their chances of survival this season.

They currently sit in 18th spot in the Championship; just two points above Huddersfield Town in the final relegation place, and on current form will find themselves a lot closer to the bottom before too long.

With eight games remaining in the season, the Devon side will be looking for results against Norwich and Bristol City over the Easter Weekend, before a crucial clash with Rotherham United next Friday.

Another big match against Queens Park Rangers comes the following midweek, before promotion-chasing Leicester City make the journey to Home Park.

With a final three fixtures of Stoke City, Millwall and Hull City, there could be a whole lot on the line in the final stretch of the season, with a number of clubs at the bottom of the table starting to pick up points on a regular basis.

Argyle aren’t one of them at the moment, and Gyabi’s loss could compound that even further; he may have struggled to perform in a green shirt at times but he isn’t the anomaly at the moment.

With the games coming thick and fast between now and the end of the season every available body is crucial, so his loss could be another nail in the coffin for the Pilgrims’ survival chances.