Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher was thrilled to see his side show their true colours after bouncing back from their midweek mauling at Bristol City with a stunning demolition of Norwich.
Argyle were humbled 4-1 at Ashton Gate on Tuesday but it was their turn to dish out the pain on Saturday as they thrashed the Canaries 6-2 at Home Park.
Morgan Whittaker led the way with a hat-trick while Dan Scarr, Finn Azaz and substitute Luke Cundle were also on the scoresheet for the rampant hosts, who led 4-0 at half-time.
Norwich pulled two goals back through Adam Idah’s brace but they were already 5-0 down at the time and well on course for a comprehensive loss.
Schumacher said: “I thought we played really well and I spoke earlier in the week about how our performance on Tuesday didn’t look like us.
“It’s been a while since we had a performance like Tuesday and we felt we could do something about it.
“It wasn’t a hard fix really. It was just about putting in a bit more effort and obviously getting people in the right positions and doing the basics right.
“When we get that right as a team we always look a threat and so I was really pleased with the reaction from the lads.
“We knew that the speed that we have got up top would cause their centre-backs problems.
“What pleased me the most was the understanding of what we were trying to do and then the execution of it was brilliant.”
Whittaker opened the scoring in the 15th minute and Scarr added a second 20 minutes later but it was in first-half stoppage time where Plymouth did the real damage as Azaz and Whittaker doubled their lead in a decisive spell.
Schumacher added: “We were thinking of going in at 2-0 at half-time and all of a sudden we were going in at 4-0. That was a bit of a mad few minutes but it gives you that cushion.
“We spoke about having to concentrate because we know the quality they have got and if they got the first goal early then there would be 45 minutes for them to score three goals and they could easily do that.
“We said stick to the plan keep doing what we are doing and if we got another opportunity to counter-attack try and take it.
“When we got the fifth goal it settled everybody down.”
Whittaker was celebrating his first Championship hat-trick and Schumacher said of the 22-year-old: “I am buzzing for Morgan. He’s obviously a huge player for us.
“Before today he had one goal and four assists, now he’s got four goals so he’ll be pleased with his day’s work. I thought him and Finn Azaz today were outstanding.”
Canaries boss David Wagner was left fuming at his side’s performance, saying the players lost their heads.
He said: “It was a disappointing result and a horrible afternoon for us.
“I am very angry about how we responded after we conceded the first goal which was an offside situation.
“For the second goal we didn’t do our job in the wall when they had two players on the ball, and after the two goals unfortunately we totally lost our heads and this is something that should not happen.
“Then we conceded four counter-attack goal -because we lost our heads we played in spaces where we shouldn’t play.
“We have been quite solid at the back in the past and haven’t looked vulnerable on the counter-attack and today was totally the opposite and this is something that is not good enough.
“We lost our heads after the first two goals and conceded a deserved heavy defeat because of it.
“We wanted them to win the second half and make it better but we conceded two further counter-attack goals in the transition.
“This game is quite easily explained, and the players are smart enough they know exactly what went wrong and we will show them again and discuss this.
“This can’t happen. Football is a game of mistakes but you can’t lose your head.”
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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