Plymouth Argyle may have lost to Manchester City in the FA Cup, but they achieved something no other English team has ever done

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Plymouth Argyle’s FA Cup adventure came to an end at the weekend, as Manchester City saw off the Championship strugglers with a comfortable 3-1 win at the Etihad.

Miron Muslic’s Plymouth side had defeated high-flying Liverpool in the previous round, and dreams of another giant-killing were floated ahead of the clash with City.

Plymouth even took the lead against the odds, with Maksym Talovierov shocking supporters at The Etihad after 38 minutes. But, Nico O’Reilly had the home side level just before half-time, and added his second with 15 minutes to go. Kevin De Bruyne sealed the win in the 90th minute.

So, the Pilgrims’ great cup journey is over. But, even in defeat, the Championship side can proudly look back on the clash with City knowing they have achieved something truly unique and very, very impressive.

• READ MORE: Who will win the Championship Golden Boot race?

Erling Haaland fails to score against Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup

Erling Haaland is one of the most difficult forwards to stop in world football, but Plymouth Argyle hold an interesting record over the Norwegian following Saturday’s 3-1 defeat to Manchester City.

The 6’5 centre-forward has scored 92 goals in 105 games in English league and cup competitions since his arrival at The Etihad in 2022.

So, considering no side has conceded more than Plymouth’s 68 goals in the league this season — which is 11 higher than Portsmouth’s 57 so far this term — you’d think Haaland would have a field day against the Argyle defence.

Of course, much of those issues were prevalent under Wayne Rooney, but Plymouth’s defensive woes have not yet ended totally in the nine league games in charge for Muslic. And yet, they managed to keep one of the world’s most prolific strikers at bay.

Against Manchester City, it was always likely to be a tough task to keep the plethora of attacking options quiet, but Haaland failed to register, which made history in the process.

Believe it or not, Plymouth became the first side that he has not scored against in English footballing competition during his time at City. So, that’s every Premier League team Haaland has faced, plus all the teams he’s come up against in the cups — he’s scored against them all, but Plymouth proved to be the immovable object this time.

• READ MORE: How much is the Championship title prize worth?

Plymouth must take heart from FA Cup run into the Championship campaign

With 11 league games remaining, Plymouth remain in an incredibly perilous position, even if shoots of life have sprung under the tutelage of Muslic thus far.

There are fixtures to come against sides such as Hull City, Portsmouth, Derby County, which will be crucial in securing their second tier status.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
17	PortsmouthPortsmouth	35	10	9	16	43	57	-14	39
18	Oxford UnitedOxford United	35	9	11	15	36	52	-16	38
19	Stoke CityStoke City	35	8	12	15	34	47	-13	36
20	CardiffCardiff	34	8	12	14	37	55	-18	36
21	Hull CityHull City	34	8	9	17	33	44	-11	33
22	LutonLuton	35	8	7	20	32	55	-23	31
23	PlymouthPlymouth	34	6	12	16	36	68	-32	30
24	DerbyDerby	35	7	8	20	33	48	-15	29

They must ensure that their FA Cup form translates to big performances and reinvigorated confidence in the Championship, with very little room for error given the three-point gap to safety that they must now close.

As seen by reactions during Plymouth’s recent match against Luton Town, nerves hang by a thread for many fans embroiled in the second tier relegation battle. Thankfully, they will face easier challenges than Haaland, De Bruyne, et al. in their remaining games.