Steven Schumacher praised the “outstanding” character of his Plymouth side as they fought back to draw 3-3 with Middlesbrough at Home Park.
Goals from Bali Mumba, Finn Azaz and Morgan Whittaker cancelled out efforts from Boro striker Josh Coburn (2) and Sam Greenwood.
The Argyle boss said: “If we play as well as we do then we’ve got to get points, so I’m pleased that we got a point today.”
“I thought it was a great game, two good teams who obviously like to attack.
“There were moments of quality and passages of good play from both sides.
“I felt we were really good first half. Even though we fell behind I thought we were playing well and probably deserved to go in ahead.
“Second half they came out and we couldn’t get the ball off them for 15 minutes and they’ve shown their quality and got themselves ahead.
“So, it was a really tough game, end to end, but the character of our players was outstanding and I’m really pleased to get something from the game because overall I would say a draw was a fair result.
“Since I have been in charge we have always said ‘try and be positive and get on the front foot’ and ‘try and enjoy the game and be exciting’.
“I know at times that can leave us open and I know at times we can defend better and make less errors.
“But we have also got to remember the players we have got and not many of them have played at this level, so they haven’t got the experience that Middlesbrough have got or loads of other Championship teams.
“We are getting better and we can only learn and develop, so that’s what I want them to do, what I believe and hopefully what our fans like to see.”
Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick said: “We did enough to win the game. A lot of the performance was good, we didn’t give them an awful lot and what we did give them they punished us for.
“We were terrific in the second half and they had a free-kick that came from nowhere go in at the back post and it is what it is.
“We didn’t start particularly well but we looked dangerous and got the goal and put ourselves in a good position.
“We had a few minutes where we let them into the spaces we knew they wanted to be in and that was frustrating.
“Then the second half I thought we were terrific. The free-kick going in changed the last 10 minutes, so it is a bit frustrating.
“We appreciate all the effort the fans have gone to this week and to add the Norwich one on the back of that a week before, it’s an incredible two weeks of travelling and effort from them.
“We have given them a couple of wins, but this one we felt like we did enough.
“They have seen goals, application and effort from the boys, so there was enough to celebrate and it was nice to spend a few moments with them at the end and show them how much we appreciate them.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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