It will not be the most important game in Plymouth Argyle’s history. That was the 3-2 victory over Swansea in April 1953 that sealed fourth place in what is now the Championship, Argyle’s highest league finish. Or perhaps it was in 1973 when Pelé came to Home Park with Santos, and lost. This is not even their most important modern fixture, given that last summer Argyle reached the League Two play-off final. But, still, Liverpool at Anfield in the third round of the FA Cup? You’re not going to forget it, are you?
So how does a Pilgrim approach this big match, the glamour tie, a potential Cup upset? David Fox knows better than most. He played against Liverpool for Norwich City who snatched a Premier League draw back in 2011. Now anchoring Plymouth’s midfield alongside Graham Carey, Fox knows that Anfield can be a different experience altogether. “We played in the early evening under the lights and it was the best atmosphere I’ve experienced,” the 33-year-old says. “When the Kop are singing ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’, well you can see it on the telly but when you’re out there on the pitch … wow.”
Argyle are in a hard-fought battle for promotion from League Two and recently lost top spot in the table to Doncaster Rovers. But Fox does not subscribe to the view that the Cup must take second place to league points. For a start the tie is worth £500,000 to the club. “I don’t know the specifics of how it would work out,” he says, “but we’ve already been able to bring in a centre-half and if we get the chance to help the squad that would be a big bonus.”
A good performance would also breed confidence. “If we give a good account of ourselves that’s something we can take forward,” he says. “Without a doubt it’s a chance for a lot of our lads to measure themselves against the best.
“The players in our squad who are 21 or 22 are going to be up against people that are playing at the level you aspire to. It’s not beyond possible that they can get there and they’ll get a glimpse of what kind of standards you have to reach.”
There are other things Plymouth players can look forward to from the trip to Anfield. Immaculate turf and functioning plumbing, for example. “The toilets are a bit cleaner and the showers a bit warmer – that’s the main difference,” he says. “The pitch will also be like a carpet, nice and watered. And you won’t be able to hear every individual fan that hammers you, like you can on a League Two pitch.”
Speaking of fans, they are the other half of the equation in an FA Cup tie that matches giant with minnow. Argyle have sold out their allocation, despite there being no train that could take you from Devon to Merseyside on Sunday in time.
This is conveyed by Josh Widdicombe, star of The Last Leg, Mock the Week and, for the purposes of this article, a celebrity Argyle supporter. “It’s a long old trip,” says Widdicombe, who will be there for the lunchtime kick-off. “It is one of the televised games, though, which always feels weird.
“If I wasn’t going I would try to find a Plymouth pub in London and I imagine anyone connected with Plymouth will go to the pub too. I mean, what else is there to do at 1.30 on a Sunday?”
While Fox is clear about the benefits of a big cup game for Argyle, Widdicombe has mixed feelings. “I was watching us play Barnet the other day and thinking: ‘Would I trade three points here for a win over Liverpool?’ I don’t think that’s a deal that was on the table, by the way.
“But the question: ‘What do we care about more?’ is interesting. We’ve been trying to get out of League Two for ages, we need to get it done. But on the other hand if we beat Liverpool it would be the greatest moment in our history, while scraping up to League One in third place and then getting relegated again the next season wouldn’t be.”
Like Fox, Widdicombe is clear that the financial benefits of a big third-round tie are the key. “It’s going to make us half a million, which will make a huge amount of difference for Argyle. From that perspective it’s huge. I’d say it was the only reason any lower league team competes in the FA Cup. The first, second round of the Cup feel utterly meaningless. If somebody showed you the third-round draw ahead of time and you got another small club, you wouldn’t waste the time. It’s only the giant-killing games that make it worthwhile. Or at least, the giant-playing games.”
Widdicombe is a big fan of the midfielder Carey, who is “far better than anyone in the division” and a keen admirer of the manager, Derek Adams. The Scot is cut from less flamboyant cloth than his opposite number at Liverpool but Widdicombe believes Jürgen Klopp could hold his own in League Two.
“Derek Adams is a brilliant manager and of all the people currently associated with the club, he’s the one most likely to rise, with or without us,” says Widdicombe. “But it would be interesting having Klopp in League Two.
“I remember when Liverpool played Exeter last year and he was being interviewed in front of the sponsors’ boards. Suddenly they went from a close up to a longer shot and it turns out he’s standing next to a sink with loads of dirty tea cups piled up on it. He didn’t look out of place. If there’s any Premier League manager who could handle the grimness of League Two, it would be Jürgen.”
