The dismissal of Ian Foster will have an effect on Plymouth Argyle’s summer transfer ambitions, according to chairman Simon Hallett.
After their 1-0 loss to Bristol City at home on Easter Monday, Foster was let go on April 1.
Since taking over at Home Park in early January, the former England U20s manager has been in command. He left Steven Gerrard’s coaching staff at Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia to assume the position. He succeeded Steven Schumacher, who had left in December to join Stoke City, a team in the Championship.
Nothing about Foster’s appointment went as planned. His stint was not good at the end, as Argyle only managed one victory in their final 11 Championship games.
Before the news was officially verified, for weeks, many Plymouth supporters called for the 47-year-old to resign his job due to his extreme unpopularity.
Foster was hired with a contract that ran through 2027, so Plymouth would have had to pay a hefty price to let Foster go.
Hallett stated in an interview with the Plymouth Herald that Foster’s dismissal will have an immediate effect on Plymouth’s summer transfer budget.
Naturally. Anytime money disappears without warning, it affects the future. Yes, without a doubt.
He responded, “We will see,” when asked how much Foster’s dismissal would affect the Pilgrims’ summer transfer budget.
Since we are now seeking a new investor, as everyone is aware, we need to have four budgets: a championship budget with a new investor, a
Three budgets: one for the championship without a new investor, one for League One with a new investor, and one for League One without a new investor.
We are unable to say at this time. As we have stated from the start of the season, the objective is to locate a new investor who will enable us to advance higher in the Championship than we now are.
Foster’s tenure will go down as one of the worst, and will affect Argyle in the future
Foster’s reign in Devon did not go to plan in the slightest and was a poor move for all involved.
Replacing Schumacher was always going to be a hard task. He was popular with the fans and had taken Argyle up to the Championship last season after winning League One, and when he left he had them in a fairly stable mid-table position.
Foster’s hiring looked a good one at the time too – a young coach who played a progressive brand of football and who had experience working with young players.
But it did not go well for many reasons.
He completely changed the style of football they played from what it was under Schumacher, which many of the squad did not adapt to quick enough. His responses in adversity and the way he communicated with fans was also poor, so he never truly had the fans on his side.
This led to him winning just four of his 16 games in charge, losing all of his last five home games, without even scoring a goal.
He may still need to work on his man-management skills, but he’s still a decent coach. Foster would likely be more effective joining a team in the summer as opposed to the middle of the season, when he would have more time to instill his philosophy among the players.
Still, as Hallett hinted, Foster’s firing will surely have a significant effect on the transfer budget.
As one of the smaller Championship teams, Argyle only broke their transfer record by bringing in Morgan Whittaker in the summer.
The priority will be staying in the Championship, and once the season is over, they can reassess. But if they do stay up, sacking Foster will definitely make it a tough job to go again next season on a shoestring budget.
