Plymouth manager Steven Schumacher tipped goalkeeper Michael Cooper for the Premier League after he kept a clean sheet on his comeback in a 0-0 draw against West Brom at The Hawthorns.
The 24-year-old, who has made more than 150 appearances for the Pilgrims, made his return after eight months out with a ruptured cruciate knee ligament and helped Argyle to their first shutout in seven games.
“Since pre-season he’s worked his socks off and he deserves to play at this level and at a higher level than this,” said Schumacher.
“I’m buzzing for Michael. He’s been a huge player for us for a couple of seasons and I rate him really highly. He is a top goalkeeper and I’m glad to have him back.
“He’s one of the best young goalkeepers in the country – he’s sharp, he’s a calming influence and he makes big saves.
“It was a big call to put him in the team but that’s what I get paid for and he repaid it and I’m delighted for him.
“There weren’t many massive moments for him but what he had to deal with, he did it well and he was calm with his feet.
“He was happy to be back. I spoke to him on Tuesday or Wednesday and asked if he was OK about it and I said ‘You need to get it into your head because you’re playing on Saturday’.”
Promoted Plymouth – still winless on their travels this season – created the best chance when Morgan Whittaker’s curling shot hit the inside of the post in the 13th minute.
Kaine Kesler-Hayden and substitute Mustapha Bundu were also denied by West Brom goalkeeper Alex Palmer.
West Brom’s only serious effort on target was Grady Diangana’s deflected shot which Cooper tipped behind.
“I’m not going to say I’m disappointed with a point away from home,” added Schumacher. “We played outstandingly well in the first half and the areas we got into were really good.
“At half-time we were worried because we thought we’d get punished in the second half but we weathered the storm and had another good chance through Mustapha Bundu.”
The Baggies forced 10 corners – double Arygle’s tally – and their head coach Carlos Corberan was disappointed with the return from dead-ball situations.
“We created a lot of set-pieces; our attacks didn’t finish as attacks, they finished with set-pieces and it was another week where we didn’t use our set-pieces well enough,” said Corberan.
“They were better than us in the first half and we were better than them in the second half.
“I think they found a way to break our press in the first half and after that they found possibilities to attack our box.
“In the second half, we found a way to recover balls in the attacking half, we found a way to dominate the game but we didn’t create a lot of clear-cut chances.
“In the first half they broke our defensive structure and we were too focused to press.
“We tried to press every ball in the first half and when you do that, you don’t press well, and you don’t defend well.
“In the second half, we showed more clarity, defended when we had to defend and pressed when we had to press.”
Bayern Munich 2-2 Real Madrid: Vinicius' late leveller sets up winner-takes-all showdown
Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior scored twice, including an 83rd-minute penalty, to snatch a 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich in an entertaining Champions League semi-final first leg on Tuesday.
The Brazilian struck against the run of play when he slotted in to give the visitors the lead from Toni Kroos' defence-splitting pass after 24 minutes at Allianz Arena.
Bayern struck twice in four second-half minutes to turn the game around, with Leroy Sane threading home a powerful shot in the 53rd minute and Harry Kane edging his side ahead with a penalty soon after.
Madrid, however, earned a spot-kick of their own when Rodrygo was brought down and Vinicius coolly converted it to equalise, leaving this tie wide open ahead of next week's return leg.
Facing each other for a record eighth time at this stage of the competition, it was Bayern who started well, racking up half a dozen attempts on goal by the 15th minute with Sane and Kane coming close.
Madrid needed only one chance to score though, stunning the home crowd when Kroos sliced open the Bayern defence with a through ball and Vinicius chased it down to beat Manuel Neuer.
Kroos almost added another himself in the 51st minute but his curled shot was palmed wide by Neuer. Instead, it was Bayern who scored two minutes later with a solo effort and shot from Sane for a deserved equaliser.
Their comeback was complete in the just four minutes later when Jamal Musiala was brought down by Lucas Vazquez and Kane sent Andriy Lunin the wrong way to put the home side ahead.
Madrid, chasing a 15th European Cup, levelled in the 83rd minute with Vinicius' penalty to set up a mouth-watering return leg in Madrid next week.
The winners will face either Borussia Dortmund or Paris Saint-Germain, who meet in the second semi-final on Wednesday.
Vinicius double drags Madrid back into Champions League semi-final after Bayern draw
Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior scored twice, including an 83rd-minute penalty, to snatch a 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich in an entertaining Champions League semi-final first leg on Tuesday.
The Brazilian struck against the run of play when he slotted in to give the visitors the lead from Toni Kroos' defence-splitting pass after 24 minutes at Allianz Arena.
Bayern struck twice in four second-half minutes to turn the game around, with Leroy Sane threading home a powerful shot in the 53rd minute and Harry Kane edging his side ahead with a penalty soon after.
Madrid, however, earned a spot-kick of their own when Rodrygo was brought down and Vinicius coolly converted it to equalise, leaving this tie wide open ahead of next week's return leg.
Kim Min-Jae's mindless drag on Madrid forward Rodrygo afforded Carlo Ancelotti's side their leveller seven minutes from time, with Thomas Tuchel's men now needing an unlikely away win to reach the final.
Yet Tuchel will feel a draw was the least Bayern deserved, having dominated the opening stages before a remarkable second-half turnaround displayed their attacking quality in Munich.
Bayern will look to Kane once more for inspiration in Madrid given their talisman has been involved in 11 goals in the competition this season (eight goals, three assists); the most ever by an English player in a single campaign in the Champions League.
However, Tuchel may still be concerned as when avoiding defeat away from home in the first leg of a knockout stage tie in the Champions League, Madrid have progressed on 18 of the previous 19 occasions.
Al Ittihad 1-2 Al Hilal: Holders into King's Cup final
Al Hilal overcame Sergej Milinkovic-Savic's red card as Saud Abdulhamid's late goal sealed a 2-1 victory over Al Ittihad in the King's Cup semi-finals.
Without Karim Benzema, Al Ittihad ultimately lacked the firepower to make their numerical advantage count in Tuesday's clash.
Former Lazio midfielder, who joined Al Hilal as part of their spending spree last year, received a straight red card in the 42nd minute.
Al Ittihad's Abderrazzaq Hamed-Allah cancelled out Micheal's opener, but Abdulhamid popped up with the winner in the 81st minute.
Al Hilal are 10-time King's Cup winners, having won their 10th title last season.
The Saudi Pro League leaders, who are still without the injured Neymar, will now face either Al Khaleej or Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr in the final at the end of May.
Data Debrief: Malcom in the middle
Al Hilal might be missing their star Brazilian Neymar, but his compatriot Malcom is delivering when it comes to playmaking.
The former Zenit attacker set up both of Al Hilal's goals, creating three chances in total and registering a pass accuracy of 92.6 per cent, better than any of his team-mates.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
