'We lost then and we lost again here' - Under fire Wayne Rooney suffers fresh setback as pressure builds

Former Birmingham City boss Wayne Rooney admits his Plymouth Argyle side must start to get results soon after watching his team lose 2-0 against Sheffield United.

However, it wasn't all smooth sailing for the Blades as Plymouth posed a significant threat throughout the match, something that has given Rooney hope as he looks to steer his side towards an upturn in fortune.

Rooney expressed disappointment but saw positives: "We’re obviously disappointed with the result. I don’t think anyone watching that can say we deserved to lose the game," he said. Rooney acknowledged Sheffield United's effectiveness: "I’ve got to give credit to Sheffield United, that’s what they can do to you. They’re very efficient and good in both boxes and we felt the full force of that."

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He lamented missed chances: "I think we saw a really improved performance but we fell short. We missed some good opportunities throughout the game and we were punished for that."

Rooney remained hopeful despite the setback: "As the game went on I thought we could get something out of it but it opened up towards the end and when we conceded the penalty the game was done."

He pinpointed areas for improvement: "We were probing and getting into good areas but the last bit wasn’t quite there, which is something we have to work on."

Finally, he praised his team's spirit: "In recent away games we’ve caved in after going a goal down but I was really pleased with our reaction today, we showed a real resilience."

"We know we’ve had some really bad performances and results away from home but there are lots of positives to take away from the game."

"We were the better team, just like in the last game against Swansea, but we lost then and we lost again here. We know we need to turn these positive performances into results."

"We’ve got a difficult Christmas period ahead, as does every team in this league, but we have to keep digging in. We’ll move on from this and take next week to prepare ahead of another tough game."