'Nobody gave them a chance' - Plymouth make 'history' with upset

Sitting at the bottom of the Championship and without a win in 11 matches, Plymouth Argyle would have feared the worst before their FA Cup trip to Brentford.

Their Premier League opponents have been incessant at Gtech Community Stadium, scoring 27 goals in 10 Premier League games, with no side scoring more goals at home this season in the top flight.

Argyle, on the other hand, were without a win on the road since April - scoring just three goals and conceding 35 from their 14 league games on the road this term.

But, after a disciplined defensive display in west London, Morgan Whittaker scored the only goal of the third-round tie with eight minutes remaining to send the Championship strugglers through and hand a glimmer of hope to their fanbase, who have had little to celebrate recently.

A string of dismal results under head coach Wayne Rooney led to the departure of the former England and Manchester United striker on New Year's Eve.

Under Rooney, Plymouth won just five and lost 15 of 25 games in all competitions - a win rate of just 20%, and they headed into the cup tie on the back of two straight draws under caretaker Kevin Nancekivell.

Austrian Miron Muslic was announced as their new boss on Friday but he was limited to a watching brief from the stands against the Bees.

So it was not a surprise that not many expected the Pilgrims to compete, let alone produce the biggest upset of the round.

"Nobody gave Plymouth a chance," former England goalkeeper Rob Green said on BBC Radio 5 Live.

"The way they celebrate says to me they didn't really give themselves a chance but it has given them a huge, wonderful boost.

"It's a story and the FA Cup is all about stories. This is a great story."

Plymouth faced a Brentford side that started without Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, who have scored 23 league goals between them.

But their starting line-up included Denmark international Mikkel Damsgaard, who has bagged seven assists this season, as well as other regulars like Sepp van den Berg, Kevin Schade and Mads Roerslev.

Plymouth, though, went toe-to-toe with them and hardly gave the hosts an inch, after overcoming early blushes when they allowed Fabio Carvalho to have a couple of sighters at their goal.

"The plan this week was to be organised, to be in our shape, to come to a Premier League team and make it as difficult as we could for them and to have a bit of quality on the ball," said interim coach Nancekivell after the game.

And his players executed that plan to perfection as they remained solid even after Thomas Frank introduced Mbeumo, Wissa and Keane Lewis-Potter off the bench - before Whittaker produced the moment of magic.

The 24-year-old, who scored 20 goals last season, cut in from the right and - with the Brentford defence applying little pressure - planted a low drive into the bottom corner to the delight of the away end.

"If we continue performances like that there's no reason why we can't accomplish staying in the league," said Nancekivell, who will be part of Muslic's backroom staff.

"I am proud of everybody, and I'm pleased for the supporters. It's a big day for us. The FA Cup brings that romance and we've put a little bit of history in it by getting the win."

The defeat meant Brentford exited the FA Cup in the third round for the third consecutive season and will now turn their attention back to the Premier League, where they face champions Manchester City on Tuesday.

"You can lose, and then you can lose in a way that's not top - we didn't lose in the best way because we didn't hit our highest level," Frank said.

Meanwhile, Argyle will wait to learn their fourth-round opponents in the draw on Sunday, and match-winner Whittaker is eyeing another upset next month. He wants to play Manchester United, who face Arsenal on Sunday.

"I think that's what the FA Cup's all about. I think there's always one upset and I think that's what we tried to be and luckily it happened," said the Plymouth winger.

Asked who he wanted to face in the next round, Whittaker said: "It's going to be a big one. A big one at home."