Tom Cleverley praised his team’s ‘professional and efficient’ performance as they beat Barnsley 3-0 on Saturday.
Three different types of goals, coupled with a clean sheet, meant that the Argyle Head Coach was very pleased with what he saw throughout the 90 minutes.
Oli Irow’s goal just 21 seconds into the game was spectacular, putting the Greens ahead. Then, Ronan Curtis pounced on an error from Barnsley keeper Rogan Ravenhill to double the advantage.
Bim Pepple scored an equally impressive goal early in the second half, but for very different reasons. The Canadian shrugged off the physical challenge from Connor O’Riordan before curling into the top corner to make it 3-0.
Job well done, Cleverley thought.
He said: “Professional and efficient; I think those are the two words. We didn't have as many chances as we normally do at home, but we got the job done early in both halves and then managed the game pretty well.
“We identified that our kick-offs have been a little bit below par with conceding a goal at Leicester and conceding a chance from Doncaster's kick-off, so we put a bit of emphasis on it this week.
“You think that that's going to get you territory, you dream that it could get you a goal - and the goal is of the highest level. We've seen already Oli [Irow] can bring this team some X factor and turn draws into wins, or turn tight games into dominant games.
“Fantastic goal, probably the best I've seen on this pitch.
“It's a big boost of confidence, a shot of adrenaline. But also what does it do to an opposition who were on the end of a tough result last week, who only had one player over the age of 23?It's a really difficult blow for them as well as a huge one for us.
“It's not just the strike which is outstanding, the touch on the inside of the full-back is of a high level as well. It gets better every time I watch it back.
“We made the most out of our big situations. We capitalised on the mistake from the long throw. We've got that aerial presence in the team.
“Then we saw the best of Bim Pepple, I think you’ll struggle to find a better striker with back to goal, and then you'll struggle to find a better striker who can finish in the corners with both feet. That was his goal in a nutshell.
“Efficient is the word. We were efficient with our energy in the later parts of both halves, which for that you give up a little bit of territory where the game's played and it's not how I'd like to see as if the game was 0-0.
“The last two games have felt like us; scoring three from different avenues, whether that be set plays, whether that be combining around the box, whether that be transition.
“I'm really pleased with the clean sheet to add to the three goals.
“There were some really standout performances in that, you always want to address it as a unit, but I'm going to name one: I didn't think Pleggy put a foot wrong today. Outstanding performance in what was a strong defensive performance.
“We’ve got a target of being neutral to how many games we've played, to how many goals we've conceded. We were eight and five before today, now we're eight and six. It's another step closer to that.”
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You can watch Tom Cleverley’s Barnsley reaction on Argyle TV, in full, here.
