Progress is paramount in Schumacher’s remit
Manager is not under pressure for Argyle to win promotion after he pens new deal
FRESH from signing a new, fiveyear deal with Plymouth Argyle, manager Steven Schumacher insists that promotion is not the be all and end all at Home Park this season.
The Pilgrims have put themselves into a fantastic position with 43 points from their first 19 games, which sees them top of the table, two points ahead of second-placed Ipswich Town and three ahead of the play-off pack.
But while expectation and excitement is understandably growing around Home Park, Schumacher insists that there have been no demands placed on him by the Argyle board after handing him a new deal.
“Well, it hasn’t been written out to me to say ‘We have to get promoted or you are getting the sack Schuey’.
That’s not the case,” he said. “The case is keep progressing, keep trying to perform and keep trying to improve as a club. That was the objective.
“We knew where we were at. We wanted to try and get into the top half last season. We just missed out on the play-offs. This season we wanted to try and get into the playoffs and now we are in the automatic promotion places at the moment.”
Schumacher added: “Just to keep trying to improve and keep trying to progress is the remit. And that’s what we will try and do.”
Argyle are without a match this weekend as their FA Cup campaign ended at the first hurdle with a shock 5-1 defeat at League Two Grimsby Town.
That break could be a blessing in disguise as it allows players carrying knocks and niggles the opportunity to shake them off and be ready for when League One action commences at Home Park against Port Vale next Saturday.
However, the fact that Schumacher is totally committed to the Pilgrims until 2027, after speculation linking him with recent Championship vacancies at Huddersfield Town and West Bromwich Albion, is also great news for a club where such stability is rarely seen in modern football.
“I think so, yeah,” Schumacher said when asked if such security is good for him and the club. “The way the modern contracts work, or my experience of them anyway, is that a manager might have a five-year contract but if you got sacked you don’t get five years pay. There is always a severance termination in that.
“On the other side, if a manager leaves (for another club) then there will be a compensation fee. That’s how it works.
“Obviously, financially it’s a little bit better for me and financially I’m sure it will be a little bit better for the club as well. That’s kind of what happens in new deals, I suppose. It’s quite standard practice.”
On that speculation, Schumacher said: It wasn’t a distraction. I found the first one (Huddersfield) quite amusing. I was like ‘Okay, where has that come from?’ You see what happens in the betting markets don’t you?
“You go from 25/1 and no-one has ever heard of you, to half a day later you are 4/6 odds on favourite and you are leaving.
“I found that quite amusing when there had been no real conversation, certainly on my part.
“It wasn’t a distraction, no, I just thought it was part and parcel of football.
“It’s probably to be expected when someone is doing well, under the circumstances that we are in as well, and I’m sure it won’t be the last time.”