Plymouth Argyle may look at Sheffield Wednesday with a tinge of jealousy | OneFootball

Plymouth Argyle may be looking at Sheffield Wednesday with envy after they signed former loanee Ibrahim Cissoko.

It has been an incredibly disappointing season for Plymouth Argyle in the Championship, but they will be hoping to make a push for survival in the second half of the season after a busy January transfer window.

After he won just five of his 25 games in charge, Plymouth parted company with Wayne Rooney in December, replacing him with former Cercle Brugge manager Miron Muslic.

It was a gamble by the Pilgrims to bring in a manager with no previous experience of English football, and Muslic endured a difficult start to his tenure, but there have been signs in recent weeks that the 42-year-old is starting to make an impact.

After picking up an impressive point in a 2-2 draw at Sunderland, Argyle ended their 15-game winless run with a 2-1 victory over promotion-chasing West Bromwich Albion at Home Park on Saturday.

Plymouth remain bottom of the Championship table, and they are still four points from safety, but it is fair to say that recent performances and the January transfer business have lifted the mood around the club after a tough period.

Plymouth Argyle will have mixed emotions after January transfer window

With their Championship status hanging in the balance, Plymouth owner Simon Hallett invested heavily during the January window, bringing in five new signings, and the club twice broke their transfer record with the additions of Michael Baidoo and Maksym Talovyerov.

The new arrivals have already made a big impact, with Talovyerov, Katic and Puchacz all impressing in the win over West Brom on Saturday, but there are question marks over whether Argyle's squad is stronger or weaker after the closure of the window.

While they did bolster their squad, the Pilgrims also lost two key players, with defender Lewis Gibson joining Preston North End for a reported fee of £1.5 million and forward Morgan Whittaker making a £5 million move to Middlesbrough.

Gibson and Whittaker were not the only players to leave Home Park during the transfer window, with winger Ibrahim Cissoko having his loan spell from Toulouse cut short in order to join fellow Championship side Sheffield Wednesday, and it seems Plymouth were not happy with the timing of the Owls' announcement of his signing, which came while they were in action against West Brom.

Cissoko's form declined after a bright start to his time at Argyle, so supporters may not be overly disappointed to see him depart, but the club may soon have regrets if he was to thrive at Hillsborough.

Plymouth Argyle will have Ibrahim Cissoko fear after Sheffield Wednesday move

Cissoko was one of the shining lights during Plymouth's tough start to the season under Rooney, and his goal in the 1-1 draw against Hull City in August earned them their first point of the campaign.

That was the start of a brief revival for Argyle under Rooney's guidance, and Cissoko was crucial to their improvement, with the 21-year-old producing an electric display in the 3-1 victory over Luton Town in late September, during which he scored twice.

Unfortunately for Cissoko, that would be the highlight of his time at Home Park as, after being sent off in the 5-0 defeat at Cardiff City in October, he then sustained a hip injury which required surgery, keeping him out until the start of January.

Cissoko made three substitute appearances for the Pilgrims following his return from injury, but Muslic seemed unconvinced by the winger, and after the new head coach refused to give any assurances over his future, speculation that his loan spell could be terminated early began to gather pace.

Blackburn Rovers were said to be interested in Cissoko, but it was eventually Sheffield Wednesday who won the race for his signature, and Plymouth supporters will be watching with intrigue to see how he fares at Hillsborough.

There is no doubt that Cissoko is a player with a lot of potential, but in truth, he was not particularly suited to a team in a relegation battle, and he may be able to showcase his talent much more with Danny Rohl's play-off hopefuls.

Argyle will surely be looking on with envy if Cissoko is a success at Wednesday, and if they do go on to suffer relegation to League One, they may look back at his departure as one of their biggest January mistakes.

And on March 8, Wednesday will travel down to Home Park to take on Plymouth, in a contest that could see the Dutchman come back to haunt his former club should he get on the pitch and make things happen.