Another weekend of Sky Bet Championship action begins on Friday night with a battle at the bottom between Rotherham United and Plymouth Argyle in a clash which could see the first departure from the division confirmed.
Rotherham know that anything but a win will see their drop to League 1 finalised whereas Plymouth are hovering dangerously over the edge of the relegation zone and will be eager for three points to ease their concerns.
Where to watch
The match will be shown live and in full on the Sky Sports Football channel with the build-up beginning at 7.30pm ahead of the kick off in South Yorkshire at 8pm.
Rotherham United
This hasn’t been the season that anyone connected with Rotherham United would have wanted but the fact that they haven’t pulled the plug on Leam Richardson at any point suggests that it is one which they knew could happen if things went against them. They are going to be a League 1 team next season so it probably makes sense to keep hold of a manager who has guided a club up from that level to give them the best chance of an immediate return.
While they are waiting to be put out of their misery, the Millers were able to extend their stay in the second tier with a good win over Millwall on Easter Monday, although losing the xG battle 0.92-2.47 would suggest it was a fortunate victory. The two goals they scored in that match were their first in six matches but it suggests that they are not just going to fall out of the division without a fight. They certainly won’t want to disappear in front of the TV cameras.
Plymouth Argyle
This has been a weird period for Plymouth Argyle. They have kind of been floating along since Steven Schumacher left for Stoke but suddenly the water levels have gone up and they have found themselves sinking more than they would have wanted. That has led to a change of manager with Ian Foster being dismissed after the home defeat to Bristol City on Easter Monday. Rather than call on survival specialist Neil Warnock they have put the Director of Football in charge who they underwent three winless games under earlier in the campaign.
Given how poor Rotherham have been this season, Plymouth haven’t really got much to gain here, they just need to win the game. The problem is that they have only won twice on their travels all season and that has to be a concern here. Plymouth arrive here with just two goals in their last six matches. This is a side who in 2024 have been to Huddersfield, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn and not won so it is hard to argue they are a guaranteed three points, unless the change of voice at the top has the desired effect.
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Team News
Leam Richardson is hoping that he could have Sean Morrison and Peter Kioso available for this match but he will be without the likes of Christ Tiehi, Tyler Blackett, Grant Hall and Jordan Hugill. Charlie Wyke could start after bagging the winner on Monday.
The new management duo of Plymouth Argyle have a fully fit squad to pick from with the exception of Saxon Earley who remains out with an ankle ligament problem and Alfie Devine who will be suspended after his red card on Monday.
Betting
Plymouth Argyle look like a side who are struggling under the weight of pressure of trying to stay in the division and I’m not sure I can take a team who have won twice away all season at a tight price here, even allowing for the fact that they might get some sort of bounce after the change in management. Rotherham United don’t win too many matches but they rarely get beaten out of sight at the New York Stadium. Only Southampton have come here and won by more than a goal in the last nine games dating back to the middle of December with plenty of better sides than Plymouth having been here in that time.
If you go back to the reverse meeting at Home Park, where Plymouth are much more comfortable and Rotherham a lot less sure of themselves on their travels, it took a Morgan Whittaker winner deep into injury time for Plymouth to come out on top 3-2, with the two previous goals scored by Finn Azaz who is no longer with the Pilgrims. Rotherham showed on Monday that they won’t just go down tamely. They know they are going down though so they can play with a bit more freedom than their opponents here and that could serve them well. Rotherham have drifted enough that you can get a fair price on the +0.75 Asian line and when you consider only Southampton and West Brom, two sides in the top five, have left here with a win by more than a goal this season, added to the fact Plymouth just want to get the job done here rather than run the score up, the home side on that line, where we get half our stake refunded should they go down by a goal, offers up some value.
Tips
Back Rotherham United (+0.75AH) to beat Plymouth Argyle for a 3/10 stake at 1.84 with Bet365
