Tom Cleverley under pressure as he says Plymouth face ‘long hard road’ ahead

Under-pressure Tom Cleverley believes his Plymouth side face a “long hard road” ahead after a 3-1 defeat away to Huddersfield saw them drop to the foot of League One.

The Pilgrims, relegated from the Championship last season, have taken one point from their last four league games, and the travelling fans made their feelings clear about Cleverley’s position from the stands.

Cleverley said: “I understand the frustration.

“I thought for a large part of the game our fans were magnificent, considering the circumstances. They’re a fan base that have lost nearly 60 games in two years and three months – they have every right to be frustrated.

“But how do we change that narrative now as a football club? Because that’s not good enough. That is an acceptance of defeat that we have to and must change.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a click of the fingers job. This is going to be a long, hard road with a group of players that need a lot of developing and progression, but it’s difficult at the moment.

“Until told otherwise, I will be doing my best to develop this young group and teach them how to be a bit more resilient.

“It’s two teams where one (Huddersfield) has recruited from the Championship and the top end of League One, and the other (Plymouth) has done it from League Two or the bottom of League One. I think we’ve seen that today.”

Huddersfield boss Lee Grant had also come under fire after a five-game losing streak, but his side have now taken back-to-back home victories after a midweek victory over Mansfield in the EFL Trophy.

Switching to 4-4-2 has been transformative for the injury-hit Terriers, and Grant said: “Full credit to the group, because a lot of that work had to be done in the classroom.

“I love that we’ve got intelligent players that can adapt. I’ve had to adapt, the staff have had to adapt, and we’ve had to look at what we’ve got and be honest about everything.

“We have to be able to put the lads in positions that can help them, and I think we’ve shown in the last couple of games that we’ve done a good job of that.

“What I love about it is that within all of it, it was a proper game in the first half. I have to say Plymouth came here full of energy and intensity – you can see they’re really fighting hard for their manager.

“But having said all of that, I think we dominated the first half and deserved to be 1-0 up at the break. The goal was just desserts for that work. I think it was a really good reward for all the work they put in.”