Brentford FC 0 - 1 Plymouth Argyle: FLW reports as Pilgrims secure first away win of the season

In partnership with

Football League World

·11 janvier 2025

Brentford FC 0 - 1 Plymouth Argyle: FLW reports as Pilgrims secure first away win of the season

FA Cup third round action as Premier League Brentford hosted Plymouth Argyle.

Championship strugglers Plymouth Argyle beat Premier League Brentford 1-0 to secure their first away win of the season and reach the fourth round of the FA Cup courtesy of an incredible solo goal by Morgan Whittaker.

Vidéos OneFootball

Chances came few and far between in the first half, with both goalkeepers producing excellent stops to keep the scores level. Brentford had the lion's share of the ball, but Plymouth held firm to keep the score at 0-0 going into half-time.

The Greens, who hadn't won away from home all season, continued to defend stoutly throughout the second period. They got their reward in the final ten minutes, as Whittaker came up with the goods to secure his side's first away win on the season as new manager, Miron Muslic, watched on from the stands.

Brentford 0 - 1 Plymouth Argyle

There was plenty of excitement from both sets of fans prior to kick-off. Rico Henry made his long-awaited return from injury for the Bees, whilst Argyle supporters got to get their first glimpse of new signing Michael Baidoo in action.

The new addition could've broken the deadlock early on, as Whittaker's inch-perfect ball found the Ghanian, but his heavy touch saw Hakon Valdimarsson gather it cleanly.

Brentford had their first sniff of an opening on the ten-minute mark. Caleb Roberts gave away possession cheaply in his own half, which allowed Fabio Carvalho to unleash a ranged effort. Fortunately, Conor Hazard was on hand to palm it away for a corner.

The Portuguese forward forced Hazard into another save five minutes later, as he found space in the box. The Northern Irish goalkeeper once again displayed strong reflexes to deny the Premier League side.

Argyle could've taken the lead after 20 minutes, as Callum Wright became the first visiting player to properly test Valdimarsson. A neat ball by Bali Mumba allowed Plymouth's number 11 to dart past his man and into the box. He drilled a shot low across goal, which was kept out by a tremendously strong hand from Brentford's Icelandic keeper.

The Championship side forced their first corner just ten minutes before the break. It was a pretty poor set-piece routine, as the header at the front post was nowhere near close enough to worry Valdimarsson.

After an additional minute, the referee, Ben Toner, brought the first half to an end. It was a pretty dull opening period, as neither team was able to break the other down. Plenty of encouragement for the visitors though, who had answered all the questions their Premier League opponents had asked of them and deserved to go in at the interval level.

Neither manager opted to switch things up at half-time, as both teams re-emerged from the tunnel how they'd left it 15 minutes before.

Plymouth had the first chance of the half thanks to Wright again, who'd been integral to everything positive his team had done thus far. The midfielder found space on Brentford's left and tried to beat Valdimarsson. The keeper spilled the shot almost at the feet of the arriving Baidoo, but managed to recover quickly to grasp the loose ball.

A return to action came for Mustapha Bundu early in the second period. The winger had been sidelined since December, following an injury. His introduction saw the end of Baidoo's debut, as the new arrival struggled to have much of an impact on the game.

Thomas Frank responded by introducing his heavy-hitters, Bryan Mbuemo and Keane Lewis-Potter entered the fray in place of Yehor Yarmoliuk and Henry, who went off to a rapture of applause.

Both dugouts were forced into more changes, as still neither side looked like breaking the deadlock. The Bees introduced Yoane Wissa and Nathan Collins for Paris Maghoma and Sepp Van Den Berg respectively. Darko Gyabi was introduced with another Argyle debut coming for new signing Tymoteusz Puchacz.

As the game entered the last 15 minutes of normal time, it was bodies on the line for the Championship strugglers. A ball was flashed across the box which landed at the feet of Mathias Jensen. His shot rebounded to Wissa, who heeded the crowd's advice to shoot. However, captain Adam Randell was on hand to put in a vital block, which steered the shot wide.

Ten minutes from time, the unthinkable happened. After a battling and heroic performance at the back, Plymouth reaped the rewards of their resilience and broke the deadlock. An incredible solo goal from Whittaker, who danced his way into the middle of the pitch and unleashed a thunderbolt from the edge of the box past Valdimarsson.

The Green Army cranked the noise up to 11, as their side were within touching distance of their first away victory of the season. After months of pain and misery on the road, it was about to come to an end in a Premier League side's backyard.

Fourth Official, Craig Hicks, indicated a minimum of six minutes of stoppage time as the travelling Greens did all they could to sing their side over the line. A wave of Brentford pressure came, but once again, yielded no results.

Plymouth had done it, securing a victory on the road for the first time this season. A huge cup upset for the Greens who'd put themselves into the hat for the third round.