Plymouth Argyle boss Tom Cleverley says he is “excited” as he prepares to take charge of his 100th game as a manager when the Pilgrims host League One leaders Cardiff City on Saturday lunchtime.
Cleverley started his coaching career with the Watford under-18’s side less than two weeks after retiring from playing in 2023 before going on to manage the senior team for 59 matches.
The 36-year-old now leads Argyle for their 41st game in all competitions this season after arriving at Home Park in June.
“I’m really excited to go toe-to-toe with the league’s best team with almost a full squad to choose from,” Cleverley told BBC Radio Devon.
“We were all left a little bit disappointed the last time we played two of the top four sides [suffering defeats by Stockport County and Lincoln City].
“We started the games so well – we take the lead – and then you can see we’re a really thin group; we couldn’t rotate on a double-game week.
“We couldn’t add the quality of guys like [Xavier] Amaechi, [Bradley] Ibrahim, [Jamie] Paterson and Tolly [Lorent Tolaj] who can come on and sustain it and maybe even take the performances to the next level. Now we’ve got that.
“Tolly was regaining his fitness, regaining a little bit of confidence in his body, and what I can assure you is he’s ready to start now.”
