"Wasn't good enough" - Wayne Rooney fumes at Plymouth Argyle players after Millwall defeat | OneFootball

The Pilgrims suffered a fourth straight defeat on the road with a 1-0 loss at The Den on Wednesday night

Plymouth Argyle boss Wayne Rooney was left seething with his players after the Greens went down 1-0 to Millwall at The Den on Wednesday night.

The Pilgrims dominated the ball against the Lions, but just couldn’t muster a way to goal, with just two shots on target throughout the affair despite chasing the game for over 75 minutes after Romain Esse’s opener.

Having been trounced 5-0 by Cardiff City at the weekend, Rooney would have expected a response from his side heading to East London, but a lacklustre attacking display left his side coming away pointless for the fourth away match in a row.

In fact, the Devon outfit have picked up just one point from their six away matches this season, which is proving to be a major cause for concern for the football club as they aim to compete in the second tier.

Wayne Rooney criticises Plymouth Argyle display vs Millwall

A slip by Bali Mumba early in the game was the deciding factor in Wednesday’s clash, with Ease pouncing on the ball, charging towards goal, and slotting home after a one-two with George Honeyman out wide.

From then on, Argyle had the lion’s share of the ball, but just couldn’t do anything with it, as the game played right into Millwall’s hands, as they sat back and soaked up the pressure from the visiting side.

Ryan Hardie had a tame header saved, while it was Neil Harris’ side who came closer to doubling their advantage, with Femi Azeez having the ball cleared off the line, while former Pilgrim Ryan Leonard flashed an effort wide of the post.

Having seen his side huff and puff but not really challenge the Lions, Rooney pulled no punches in his post-match assessment in Bermondsey.

The Argyle boss told Plymouth Live: “I felt we actually started the game well and had some decent control and then after the mistake from Bali you find yourself one-nil down and it gives Millwall something to hold onto.

"Even though we had more possession of the ball we didn't do anything with it. We didn't create enough chances, we didn't get enough shots off, we didn't get enough crosses in the box, so from that point of view I don't think we deserved anything out of the game. It obviously wasn't as bad as Cardiff but I think we could have been a lot better than we were.

“I have just said to the lads there, every attacking player who entered the field tonight wasn't good enough. There's small things, especially when you come here. We know it's a difficult place to come and Millwall can be direct.

"When our defenders are clearing the ball, it's something we spoke about, our forwards have to get their bodies the right side of their centre-backs to make sure we pin them and we hold the ball up, and we didn't do that

"We allowed them to put more balls in our box. We didn't hold the ball up well enough, we didn't make enough runs in behind so I think as a whole, for all the attacking players, we didn't create nowhere near enough so that's disappointing."

"For all the attacking players, there was more in them. I'm disappointed with that. We didn't pass the ball forward crisply enough, we didn't play between the lines quick enough, we didn't get it out wide and get crosses in the box enough, we didn't get shots off. So everything I wanted to see really we didn't do. That's frustrating."

Wayne Rooney addresses dreadful Plymouth Argyle away form

Having picked up three wins at Home Park on the bounce, there was plenty of enthusiasm within Argyle after heading back from the international break, but that has dissipated within a matter of days with two dismal trips on the road.

With defeats to Cardiff City and Millwall, Argyle have lost ground on two sides who were struggling alongside them at the bottom of the table, and further adds to their woes on the road.

A draw with Queens Park Rangers in August is the only point out of a possible 18 that the Greens can show for their efforts on their travels this season, with defeats to Sheffield Wednesday, Burnley and West Bromwich Albion adding to this week’s efforts.

That is obviously something Rooney is trying to address, and the Argyle boss spoke of the ongoing issues on Wednesday night.

He continued: “"It's very difficult to win away from home in this league. I think out of all the fixtures yesterday and today there was one win away from home, so we know that.

"We need to start switching results like tonight for instance, these are games which can go either way and we keep finding ourselves just on the wrong end of that. We need a bit more energy, a bit more know-all in that final third. If we have that then maybe things are a little bit different.

"We have had a very tough few days, obviously the result at Cardiff and the result tonight. The way the fixtures have gone after the international break, having two away games. I think quite a few teams have had that so it's not ideal, but we haven't been good enough in the two games.