Ryan Hardie starts, 4-2-3-1: The predicted Plymouth Argyle XI to face Hull City | OneFootball

The Pilgrims will be looking to bounce back from opening day defeat to Sheffield Wednesday

Plymouth Argyle welcome Hull City to Home Park this weekend, as Wayne Rooney prepares for his first league game in front of his own fans as Pilgrims boss.

The Greens will be looking to bounce back from their 4-0 humbling against Sheffield Wednesday on the opening day of the campaign, as they got caught cold by the rampant Owls at Hillsborough.

The former Birmingham City boss blooded five summer recruits from the start in Yorkshire, and the side looked disjointed as a result, with a number of players yet to get on the same wavelength all over the park.

With that in mind, Rooney may turn to some of the old guard to help maintain some of the standards of old when the Tigers come to town, with plenty riding on with the home crowd expecting a reaction from last weekend’s defeat.

Plymouth Argyle predicted XI

Rooney made a number of changes for the Carabao Cup clash with Cheltenham Town on Wednesday night, with Hungarian defender Kornel Szucs getting his first start for the club.

Julio Pleguezuelo also came into the side for the clash against the Robins, while there were recalls for Bali Mumba, Callum Wright, Ryan Hardie and Ben Waine.

Adam Randell also started in midfield, while club captain Joe Edwards also started the game at right-back, with Rooney praising his skipper post-match for his tenacity and enthusiasm.

With so many changes and a more positive result, the boss will no doubt be considering a number of alterations from the defeat in Yorkshire, as they look to pick up a win in front of their own fans to kickstart their season.

GK: Conor Hazard

This one is by default, with Michael Cooper finally securing a move to Sheffield United after a prolonged transfer saga throughout the summer.

Conor Hazard isn’t a player who inspires confidence between the sticks, with his distribution called into question time and time again, with many a wayward pass gifting the ball back to the opposition.

With Rooney emphasising a ball-playing philosophy, this could well be the Northern Irishman’s last game for a while, with Argyle likely to be working hard to get a new contender for the number one spot in before too long.

LB: Bali Mumba

After Nathanael Ogbeta’s horror-show against Wednesday, there can be no other option but to bring back Bali Mumba into the starting lineup.

The former Norwich City man’s bravery on the ball and willingness to charge at the opposition completely changes the game down the left flank, as he proved in the Cheltenham victory.

If the £1 million signing from last summer can strike a relationship with Ibrahim Cissoko further up the field, the Greens could have a devastating pair for the Tigers to deal with on Saturday.

CB: Kornel Szucs

It may have been against lowly opposition, but Kornel Szucs proved himself to be a very handy operator in the Carabao Cup victory on Wednesday, as he barely put a foot wrong throughout the 90 minutes.

The Hungarian import was a breath of fresh air at the back, with his zippy passing into midfield immediately turning the opposition around, and allowing a quicker transition from defence into attack.

His calmness and composure are something the Greens have been lacking at times since their return to the Championship, and he already looks like being money well spent, although the Tigers will prove a bigger test this weekend.

CB: Lewis Gibson

Mr Reliable, Lewis Gibson is one of the first names on the team sheet for Argyle these days, with the centre-back taking the armband for the first game of the season.

The former Everton man is the most trusted of the defenders at the club to date, and although he is yet to play with Szucs in the backline, the two could well prove to be a formidable pair in the season to come.

With Rooney still seeming to favour four at the back, Gibson edges out the likes of Brendan Galloway and Pleguezuelo for a starting berth as it stands.

RB: Joe Edwards

"I think the small things like that are real big things to me. Although we won the game and we scored three good goals, he showed why he was captain tonight with that character, that leadership.

"Going in for a tackle which it was probably 70-30 against him, he comes out and wins the ball and that lifts the crowd, it lifts your team-mates, it lifts everything. I was really pleased with his performance."

Rooney, and his comments to the Plymouth Herald, have done our job for us with this one. Joe Edwards may be aging, but the captain needs to be in from the start for this one, his passion and enthusiasm drives the rest of the team on.

He may have his flaws, but he more than makes up for it with his nonstop energy over the 90 minutes and constant barking of instructions to his teammates. A definite recall.

CM: Adam Forshaw

Adam Forshaw’s quality in the middle of the park is a touch above anything that Argyle have to offer currently, with his composure and vision in the middle of the park keeping things ticking over and proving to be the springboard for attacks.

The former Leeds United man made an instant impact when he entered the field on Wednesday, with some neat interlinking play to set up Ryan Hardie’s goal for the second of the night.

He may have fitness concerns, but when he is firing he is the best the Greens have in the position at this moment in time and should be a shoo-in for Saturday’s affair.

CM: Darko Gyabi

Argyle are considerably lacking for options in the middle of the park as it stands, with Jordan Houghton likely to be out for a few more weeks, while Adam Randell is yet to get back up to speed for the season.

Darko Gyabi has started both matches in the middle of the park so far this season, and it will be tough to see Rooney opting against the Leeds United loanee once again this weekend.

If he does play, he needs to up his game from his last two performances, with a number of stray passes in midweek gifting the opposition possession.

Those sorts of mistakes will be punished by sides higher up the pyramid, so he has to watch himself as he comes up against a side that will no doubt harry him when he has the ball at his feet.

LM: Ibrahim Cissoko

Ibrahim Cissoko has quickly established himself as the magic man of Home Park, with his elastic legs bamboozling defenders on the left side of the pitch.

Although it didn’t bear fruit at Hillsborough, the Toulouse loanee made all the difference on Wednesday night, as he played a huge part in the second and third goals of the game to seal the Greens' passage through to the second round.

He is an absolute box of tricks, and if he is exposed against the right-sided defender too often, he is certain to make an impact.

The only concern would be with his lack of cover from a defensive point of view, having barely looked interested in helping Ogbeta out of possession last weekend.

With the potential of Mumba behind him, that flank could be all fireworks, with plenty fo attacking quality, but a definite issue from a defensive point of view.

CAM: Mustapha Bundu

Mustapha Bundu got his first goal of the season on Wednesday night, as he rounded off the scoring with a well-taken goal from the edge of the penalty area.

The Sierra Leone international looks to be the chosen man to play as the deeper of the two frontmen judging by Rooney’s early squad selections and it could well be the case again on Saturday.

While he barely got a sniff at Hillsborough, the former FC Andorra man certainly has the potential to thrive in that position, with his vision and hold-up play likely to bring others into the game, as well as linking up with Ryan Hardie up top.

RM: Morgan Whittaker

Morgan Whittaker starts every game, so he will more than likely be named in Rooney’s side here, although his influence on games has started to wane.

The reported Rangers target - like most of his teammates - barely got a touch in Yorkshire and also missed a golden chance on Wednesday night to open his account for the season.

Although he looks under-par to begin the season, there is always a hope that he can conjure something out of nothing, as he so often did at the start of the previous campaign.

ST: Ryan Hardie

With Muhamed Tijani’s absence from the match-day squad on Wednesday, you have to wonder whether the Nigerian will be back in the team for the clash with Hull this weekend.

Instead, Ryan Hardie started in his place in midweek and looked back to his best with a number of intelligent runs beyond the backline, as well as finding the second goal of the night.

That strike was his first in 14 competitive matches for the Pilgrims, and after getting that monkey off his back, he will be hungry for more as the season continues.

As a result, the Scot should be trusted from the start this weekend, and prove to himself and the rest of the fanbase that he is back to his best and ready to fire once again.