"Unfortunately" - Plymouth Argyle, Aston Villa transfer questioned | OneFootball

The signing of Aston Villa failed to make the grade during his 18-month stint at Home Park

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 had their fair share of success in the transfer window over recent seasons, with the Greens unearthing a number of gems amid their rise from League One to the Championship.

Although the likes of Morgan Whittaker, Bali Mumba and Finn Azaz all turned out trumps, the Pilgrims have also had a handful of disappointing deals in that time period, with players failing to make the grade after making the move to Home Park.

Tyreik Wright is a player who firmly fits in the latter of the two categories, with the pacy wide man arriving from Aston Villa during the 22/23 season, but failed to earn a regular spot in the starting lineup for a side pushing for promotion.

After failing to meet the lofty expectations of him when he joined the club, Football League World’s Argyle fan pundit Chris earmarked the Republic of Ireland youth international as the player in recent memory who has failed to live up to the billing after joining the Devon outfit.

Tyreik Wright fails to impress at Plymouth Argyle

Having shone brightly for Bradford City in League Two during the first half of the 22/23 campaign, Argyle moved swiftly to bring Wright to the club in the January of that season, as they looked to add to their forward line in the hope of getting promotion over the line.

After making his debut in a 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town at Portman Road, the winger flattered to deceive as time went on, with Steven Schumacher quickly deciding the forward wasn’t up to standard for a promotion-chasing side, with appearances few and far between.

With a summer under his belt, the wide man was given the chance to prove himself in the Championship at the start of the previous campaign, but once again found himself running down blind alleys, and looking completely shot of confidence.

A return to Valley Parade followed in January, before making the move permanent in the summer, with Wright earning just a handful of appearances as an Argyle player, with the less said about them, the better, as Chris recollects:

“As with any football club, sometimes transfer signings just do not work out, either they under-perform, they can’t adapt to the managerial tactics, or they simply don’t gel with the team.

“One particular example of this in recent years for Argyle, was the signing of Tyreik Wright, who we signed from Aston Villa for an undisclosed fee in January 2023.

“He showed a lot of promise in League Two, showing as an adaptable winger with plenty of speed, potential and the ability to get into the box and provide assets.

“However, unfortunately during his time with Plymouth Argyle, he only made eleven appearances for us, most of them being late substitutes.

"Within that, he didn’t provide that much flair, that much precision with his passing, or that much adaptability when playing in deeper roles.

“Unfortunately, that led to him being loaned out back to Bradford City for the latter half of the 2023/24 season, and then again signing on a permanent deal at the start of the 24/25 season.

“We wished all the best for Tyreik Wright during his time with us, however, it just wasn’t meant to be.”

Wright seems to have found a home for himself with the Bantams, and continues to be a menace for many a League Two side following his departure from Home Park.

While his performances in Devon were of that of a player who looked unhappy and restless, the 23-year-old looked comfortable back in his familiar surroundings in Yorkshire, with Graham Alexander [pictured] consistently putting him in his starting eleven.

Even during his brief spell as a Pilgrim, there were glimpses of quality that will get more of a chance to shine at League Two level, and while the move up the football pyramid may have come too soon in his career, the former Villa man could have a big part to play in his current side’s plight for the season ahead.