DAILY MAIL 🔵 Brentford 0-1 Plymouth: Morgan Whittaker scores late winner and new boss Miron Muslic watches on as Championship strugglers cause upset in FA Cup third round tie
- Morgan Whittaker scored a late winner as Plymouth shocked Brentford
- Miron Muslic, who has replaced Wayne Rooney, watched from the directors’ box
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If there is one small blot on Thomas Frank’s Brentford CV after six transformative years in charge, it is his FA Cup record.
And the Dane was made to rue the iconic competition again as the Bees were shocked by Plymouth Argyle to crash out in the third round for the third successive season.
They say the magic of the cup has gone, but this certainly was magic as a Plymouth side who have lost 12 and won none of their 15 away games this season beat a team who have the second best home record in the Premier League.
In truth, Argyle, who sit bottom of the Championship, were brilliant all afternoon as they restricted a prolific Bees side, before Morgan Whittaker showed why top clubs around Europe are eyeing him up with a stunning strike late on.
Whittaker cut inside unchallenged before unleashing a powerful and clinical strike past Brentford’s stand-in stopper Hakon Valdimarsson to send a packed out away end into delirium as the Pilgrims picked up a first away win since April 2024.
Frank had pledged to go strong for the cup and the big news ahead of kick off was Rico Henry’s inclusion in Brentford’s starting XI, with the left back having been absent since September 2023 with a knee injury.
It’s been a long road back for Henry, who had been tipped for international honours before his lengthy lay-off, and he looked bright here as the Bees made much of the early running.
Fabio Carvalho, himself handed a rare start after a frustrating season, forced Conor Hazard into two smart saves, but Argyle were more than holding their own in front of new boss Miron Muslic, who was appointed on Friday.
Plymouth dire away record is one of the factors that cost Wayne Rooney his job, but they did their best to threaten on the counter, and Valdimarsson had to be at his best to repel Callum Wright.
Argyle have conceded 53 goals in 25 league games so Muslic, who guided Cercle Brugge into Europe during his time in Belgium, will be in no doubt about the size of task he faces, although there were so many positives the Austrian could take from this performance.
Frank’s side continued to be frustrated in the second half as Argyle defended resolutely with the Dane forced to call-on his big-guns Bryan Mbeumo, Keane Lewis-Potter and Yoane Wissa in an attempt to find a decisive intervention.
Yet Plymouth gave nothing away and the home crowd grew increasingly tetchy as the visitors started to threaten more, with Wright and Matthew Sorinola both squandering good chances.
And when Whittaker was given the freedom of west London to dart inside before his stunning effort, Muslic let out a wry smile in the stands as the Pilgrims showed the magic of the cup is still well and truly alive.