Plymouth confirm exit of Wayne Rooney replacement in blunt 13-word statement as chairman sends surprise message

The Sun

a day ago

Dear Green Army,
I am sorry to have not written earlier after relegation was confirmed, earlier this month.
Jane and I had personal issues in the US that forced us to cut short our visit to the UK, and we have been occupied taking care of them for a few weeks. Our thanks to those who sent best wishes, and all is ok now. We are making plans for a return to the UK later this summer.
We are disappointed at Miron Muslic's departure – not at his joining a club with a profile such as Schalke, but in the timing and manner of his leaving.
We hired Miron in January, giving him a three-and-a-half-year contract. Shortly after his joining us, we also hired the staff he requested, in an assistant head coach, head of elite performance, performance analysis and, a little later, a set-piece coach. A recruitment team was in place for the season, augmented by our securing the services of Stuart Webber, a very experienced and well-regarded Sporting Director, to assist with the post-season rebuild of our squad, along with Tom Randle, who has subsequently joined us on a full-time basis as Head of Recruitment.
After the season ended, and with rumours flying that Miron was attracting interest from other clubs, I called him personally and he assured me that he was 100% committed to Argyle. As a result, Miron continued to take part in all recruitment meetings and was involved with interviewing and recruiting players until just last week. His colleagues had no indication that he wanted to leave.
Last Saturday, Miron informed the club that he wished to speak with Schalke with a view to joining them. Under his contract, a club wishing to speak with him needs Argyle's prior permission. We were unwilling to give such permission, but Miron informed us that under no circumstances was he going to return to Plymouth. Thus, we reluctantly gave the necessary permission.
By making clear his intention never to return, Miron gave us no choice but to move on. We could have insisted on the full compensation and gone to court to enforce his contract but would not have had his services as head coach, and progress on recruiting a replacement would have been blocked.
Rather than get mired in a protracted, and highly disruptive, process we settled for an amount of compensation that, while below the contracted sum, is a strong financial outcome for a League One head coach, enabling us to move on positively.
As you know, we have been in talks with a prospective new investor in our club for over a year. Those talks led to an application for approval of that investment being lodged with the EFL in February.
Unfortunately, negotiations have taken too long and the key information that both we and the EFL required to complete the deal has not been forthcoming. I no longer believe that news of the new investor is imminent.
As a result, existing shareholders (I, Argyle Green and the Holliday family) will provide the funds to ensure that we stay on course with our plans. This means making funds available to ensure we have a competitive football budget to aim to return us to the Championship as soon as possible, as well as continued investment in Foulston Park. Our budget next season will be twice that we had the last time we were in League One.
These additional funds equate to the same level of financial support that was written into the investor plan for year one.
I completely understand that this will be very frustrating for fans, as it is extremely frustrating for me and the rest of the Argyle Board. I have said constantly that my resources can enable us to be a sustainable Championship club, but that if we wish to aspire beyond that we would need new investment. I can provide some of that new investment, with the Holliday family's and Argyle Green's help, but not all.
While progress towards a transaction in its current form looks to have stalled, we will continue to explore alternative routes, including being open to revised terms with other investment groups.
It is important that we get the right investor, not the quickest investor, and this may take some time. We are committed to this, but in the meantime, current shareholders can (and will) support the club through its next stage of development.
This current situation is disappointing, obviously, but honesty and transparency are important to us. It's been a long, ponderous process, but one we thought would come to a successful conclusion. It has not, but we remain in a very strong financial position.
Over the past five or six years, we have set out a clear pathway to achieving success at Argyle. In that time, we progressed from League Two to the Championship, where we spent two seasons, before suffering relegation. Our mission has been, and remains, to be a sustainable and competitive Championship club, but some of the decisions we have made in the last two seasons have not worked as we had hoped.
Those decisions obviously contributed to our relegation, but were decisions made by the entire board, and it is entirely unfair to blame any individuals. Unfortunately, in sport, as in life, decisions made do not always work out. We are sorry and will do everything we can to put it right.
Argyle's long-term strategy is set by the board and executed by Andrew Parkinson, our CEO, and his team. Away from the pitch, the club continues to make significant strides. Thanks to the efforts of all staff, we have seen remarkable off-pitch progress including record revenues this year.
We've also been recognised with several industry awards - testament to the quality of work happening every day behind the scenes. This progress is a direct result of the hard work and commitment of staff across all departments.
Our focus on sustainable growth has led to significant infrastructure investments that now generate substantial revenue which supports our football operations.
The first and still the largest of those investments was the refurbishment of the Mayflower Grandstand. Today, that not only provides outstanding match-day hospitality to our fans, but a facility for businesses and other organisations in the area. The revenues generated now number in the millions, and go directly into the running of the football club, primarily the football budget.
The Grandstand refurbishment was the first and remains the biggest investment, but has been followed by the acquisition of Higher Home Park, part of which is now used as the Biffa Fan Zone; by the Green Taverners' building, now the Far Post; by the acquisition of Goals, now Harpers; and by many smaller investments that have improved the experience for fans and sponsors. As a result, the stadium has been full for most home games. We have also invested in players, breaking the club transfer record several times and realising substantial surpluses on subsequent sales of players.
The result is that your club is now financially stronger than it has ever been with a strong and diversified revenue base. Those revenues have, until last season, helped lead to our success on the pitch. We have consistently achieved more than would be suggested by what we are able to spend on the first-team squad alone. Sometimes, our results flattered our performances but, overall, the strategy to compete by outsmarting not outspending our competitors has been successful.
Last season, it was not, and the board took the decision in January that our best hope of avoiding what by then was a very likely fate was to hire a Head Coach who could introduce a new playing style. We narrowly failed, despite the efforts of our staff and our players. I thank them all.
We will play the coming season in League One, as we did three years ago. Our circumstances, though, are much changed, because of the investments we have made and the support you have given us. We will have the financial resources to compete strongly at the top end of the division.
Relegation is always disappointing, but we are now in a position where we end up stronger than we began. In the long-term, this is not being a yo-yo club, this is being a club that invests for the long term and emerges stronger from any setbacks.
You will know that former Head of Recruitment Jimmy Dickinson has left Argyle after a successful six years. Jimmy has been a positive influence on the club, and we wish him well in the future. We also congratulate Ross Goodwin, our Head of Football Data, who will return home, and take on a senior role as Head of Recruitment at Dundee United.
We are delighted to welcome David Fox back to Home Park in a senior management role as Head of Football Operations. He will be responsible for helping formulate and executing strategy on the football side of the club. Initially, he will be aided by Stuart Webber, whose experience and abilities as a Sporting Director will be hugely beneficial to Argyle.
David and Stuart have been actively engaged in the process of recruiting a new head coach, and we hope to have an appointment in place as soon as possible. David will be provided with the support, resources and structure he needs.
As I mentioned above, we also welcome Tom Randle as Head of Recruitment. He, David and Stuart have already been working behind the scenes to identify and recruit the players who will join us this summer. Recruitment is led by David and Tom, with other senior executive involvement. This structure means recruitment continues regardless of any changes in coaching staff, ensuring alignment with the club's long-term football strategy.
We have already seen the fruits of this combined effort, and I'd like to welcome Jamie Paterson, Caleb Watts and Jack MacKenzie to Argyle.
I'll be back in the UK over the summer, when we will host a Fans Forum ahead of the new season. I'll be very happy to address the questions I'm sure you will have on the investment setbacks and how we intend to take things forward to achieve our goals.
Finally, to you, the fans - you have been outstanding. Week after week, match after match, home or away, your support never wavers, and all at your club are grateful to you. We've never been more determined to succeed and, alongside your unrivalled backing, through the highs and the lows, together we'll do this.
See you soon,
Simon