Wayne Rooney’s announcement last week that Joe Edwards would be out for a long time was a major blow to Plymouth Argyle.

This season, Plymouth Argyle has struggled with injuries, and the Joe Edwards blow was just another setback for the Pilgrims team.

Along with loan star Ibrahim Cissoko, he will be out for some time, while Lewis Gibson, Conor Hazard, and Brendan Galloway will all be out. It indicates that the Pilgrims’ backline has been rotated in previous games, and Tuesday night’s match against Portsmouth confirmed that.

Bali Mumba and Kornel Szucs, who had been constants, kept their positions at left-back, but two new players were added. Matty Sorinola replaced captain Edwards at right-back, where Julio Pleguezuelo and Szucs had started along in the midfield.

Sorinola is not the only player on Plymouth Argyle that can fill that position. Although Pleguezuelo and Victor Palsson have also been used there, Mumba is a natural right-footer.

However, Sorinola might be Rooney’s replacement now that Edwards is out for good.

A rare opportunity

Since joining Plymouth Argyle in January, Sorinola has had few opportunities. After joining from Union SG, he played 14 times in the second part of the previous season, but for the majority of this season, he has been entirely absent from the matchday roster.

But he was able to start the last two games because of injuries. The 23-year-old took advantage of a long-awaited opportunity last night.

Josh Murphy, a Portsmouth winger, was a challenging opponent for Sorinola, but the Pilgrims full-back restrained his output and eventually kept him silent until he was pulled from the game after 85 minutes.

Sorinola put on a strong show, dragging himself down the right.

In Edwards’ absence, the infrequently seen talent has made a strong case for the starting position. Given the standards he provided, the effort he made, and the presence he had on the right, he might be the perfect successor until their veteran captain recovers to full fitness. However, he will have to contend with more formidable opponents and more difficult teams.

Patience needed

Sorinola gave Plymouth Argyle a really positive performance on Tuesday night.

At MK Dons, he was a standout prospect who earned a transfer to Union SG, which is known for its talent spotting. After a period of indifference at Swansea City, he only made a permanent return to these shores with the Pilgrims, but his tenure there was difficult.

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Sorinola is still a somewhat raw player at the age of 23. He was obviously experiencing the physical affects of coming in from the cold after putting in such a significant effort against Pompey, as evidenced by his occasional cramps in the latter stages of the shift.

It implies that patience may be required until he regains match fitness, but it is to be hoped that his performances will only get better from there.

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Given his current situation, his performance on Tuesday night was really excellent, and it should be sufficient to demonstrate that Sorinola can replace Rooney while Edwards is out.