Plymouth Argyle regret already circling record-breaking club decision | OneFootball

Michael Baidoo has struggled to adapt since making the move to Home Park at the start of the year

There was plenty of anticipation surrounding Michael Baidoo’s move from Elfsborg to Plymouth Argyle in January, but the early signs have been anything but promising from the Ghanaian.

The 25-year-old was brought in as a player who could produce something out of nothing and help the Piglrims increase their creativity in the final third, but patience is running out among the Green Army to see the moments of magic they expected.

With no league start since February 1, the playmaker has immediately fallen out of favour under new boss Miron Muslic, with the Austrian’s direct playing style failing to bring the best out of their new arrival.

Simon Hallett as made a name for himself for being stringent with the playing budget during his time at Home Park, and with the Greens breaking their transfer record to bring Baidoo to the club at the start of the year, there will be questions asked about the recruitment of a player who has failed to live up to the mark in his early days in Devon.

Michael Baidoo fails to impress at Plymouth Argyle after forcing Elfsborg departure

Baidoo was itching to force a move to Home Park in the summer transfer window, with the Ghanaian said to have written a message to former club Elfsborg’s hierarchy to try and get a deal over the line so he could join Wayne Rooney at the Theatre of Greens.

While the Swedes denied any initial approaches, a deal was completed in the first few days of 2025, with the creative midfielder joining the club in a record-breaking deal, eclipsing the £1 million fees paid for Bali Mumba and Morgan Whittaker in the summer of 2023.

While the fee was surpassed by Maxi Talovierov by the end of the month, it was still a significant outlay for a side that have prided themselves on finding bargain buys of late, with many predicting great things for the new arrival once the deal was complete.

But instead of joining up with Rooney, it would be Muslic who was in charge by the time Baidoo made his first league appearance for the Pilgrims, with the former Manchester United man getting the axe on New Year’s Eve after a poor run of results.

With the change of man in the dugout, a drastic change of playing style was also introduced, with Muslic favouring a direct, territory-based style of play, with an emphasis on industry, perseverance and anticipation of knock downs from long balls, rather than the intricate buildup seen under his predecessor.

Seemingly overnight, Baidoo went from being a key piece of the puzzle to another square peg in a round hole, with his languid style of play sticking out like a sore thumb in his new surroundings, with Muslic wanting intensity all over the pitch.

Wayne Rooney, Miron Muslic differences has effected Michael Baidoo, Plymouth Argyle move

While Rooney would have utilised an attacking midfielder behind the striker with a wide man on either flank, Muslic’s use of two central players supporting a lone target man, with the wing-backs providing the width isn’t playing into Baidoo’s strengths, leaving Argyle’s January recruitment needing to be questioned.

For the second time in two seasons, the Greens have almost ripped up their transfer strategy overnight to accommodate a change in management, with Ian Foster’s arrival in January 2024 having similar effects.

Last season, Foster used his links from England youth teams to bring in a number of players on loan who struggled to make an impact in the crux of a Championship relegation battle, with the Pilgrims almost paying the ultimate price, but for Joe Edwards’ winner against Hull City on the final day of the season, which kept them in the second tier for another season.

This time around, the transfer targets changed mid-month, with Muslic craving defensive reinforcements to help in his quest to tighten up the backline, with Nikola Katic and the aforementioned Maxi brought into the fold.

As well as that, the new boss now had a player that cost over £1 million in his squad who he has since proven he has no use for, with Baidoo lucky to get any minutes on the pitch of late, with Callum Wright, Rami Al Hajj and Bali Mumba all preferred in a role supporting the striker.

The fact that Mumba, a full-back by trade, has been starting in an advanced position rather than Al Hajj or Baidoo of late speaks volumes in terms of Muslic’s point of view right now, with the latter of the two running out of time to prove his doubters wrong in a green shirt.

While he was given the benefit of the doubt during his early appearances in green, Baidoo has struggled to adapt to his new surroundings, and looks a shadow of the player that was regularly competing in the Europa League during the first-half of the season.

While a lack of support in attacking areas hasn’t helped, the Ghanaian has looked on a completely different wave length to his teammates at times, with his passes often going astray, with much of his time left chasing shadows out of possession.

While there is plenty of will for things to go right, the recent arrival looks to have already been bombed out by the new man in charge, which could even lead to questions over his future this summer, if the Greens do drop down into League One when the season comes to a close.

Having played football continuously from April 1 last year due to the Swedish summer league, it could well just be a case that he is tired and needs some time out of the game to recharge his batteries.

The demands put on a professional footballer can only stretch so far, and Baidoo has proven that everyone has their breaking point when it comes to producing the goods week after week.

Whether he gets the opportunity to redeem himself in Green is anybody’s guess, but there will already be a section of the Green Army who will have written their big-money arrival off, with zero evidence of any great contribution on the pitch over the past two months.