If there is one small blemish on Thomas Frank's Brentford CV after six transformative years in charge, it is his FA Cup record.
And the Dane was once again left to rue “a missed opportunity” in the iconic competition as the Bees were shocked by Plymouth Argyle and crashed out in the third round for the third year in a row.
They say the magic of the cup is gone, but this certainly was magic, as a Plymouth team that lost 12 and won none of its 15 away games this season beat a team that has the second-best home record in the Premier League.
Argyle, who are bottom of the Championship, were brilliant in limiting the prolific hosts, before Morgan Whittaker showed why Europe's top clubs are eyeing him with a stunning goal late on.
Whittaker came in unchallenged before unleashing a powerful effort past Hakon Valdimarsson to send a packed team into delirium as Plymouth claimed their first away win since April 2024.
There was doubt over whether Mustapha Bundu was targeting Valdimarsson in an offside position, but without VAR intervening, the goal stood.
Morgan Whittaker scored a late goal as Plymouth shocked Brentford with a 1-0 win.
Whittaker celebrates after his 82nd minute goal for the Championship team
Plymouth's new coach, Miron Muslic, was present at the Gtech stadium
“I'm very proud,” Plymouth interim boss Kevin Nancekivell said. “There is a lot of emotion and I am happy for the fans.
'We'll enjoy it tonight. The FA Cup is a release from the pressures of the Championship and if we can't enjoy days like today, we shouldn't be in the game.
“The cup brings that romance and fortunately today we have added our little piece of history to it.”
Frank was not so happy, although the Dane made sure to pay tribute to the Nancekivell team.
“Congratulations to Plymouth, they deserved the win,” he said. “They tried really hard and defended brilliantly before scoring a really good goal.
“However, it is a huge missed opportunity and we are very disappointed, but we basically created nothing.”
The big news before kick-off was the inclusion of Rico Henry in Brentford's starting eleven, as the left-back has been absent since September 2023 due to a knee injury.
It has been a long road back for Henry, who had been tipped for international honors before his long layoff, and looked brilliant as the Bees built much of the early run.
There were scenes of jubilation among the Plymouth players after Whittaker's goal.
Rico Henry, on the right, had returned to the Brentford line-up after a long injury.
Thomas Frank was frustrated when Brentford were knocked out of the FA Cup.
Interim boss Kevin Nancekivell celebrated as Plymouth pulled off a third round upset.
Fabio Carvalho, making a rare start after a frustrating season, forced Conor Hazard into two smart saves but Argyle held firm against new boss Miron Muslic, who was appointed on Friday.
Plymouth's dismal away record is one of the factors that cost Wayne Rooney his job (and this performance was perhaps a penny for his thoughts), as Valdimarsson had to do his best to fend off Callum Wright.
Argyle have conceded 53 goals in 25 league games, so Muslic, who guided Cercle Brugge to Europe during his time in Belgium, will be in no doubt about the magnitude of the challenge, although there are plenty of positives the Austrian can take away from here. .
Frank's team remained frustrated in the second half despite calling on their big guns Bryan Mbeumo, Keane Lewis-Potter and Yoane Wissa.
Plymouth gave nothing away and the home crowd became increasingly irritable as the visitors began to create more.
And when Whittaker was given the freedom of west London to throw himself inside ahead of his impressive effort, Muslic let out a wry smile in the stands as the Pilgrims showed that the magic of the cup is still alive and truly alive.
“That's what Plymouth is all about,” added Nancekivell, who is in his fourth interim spell at the club's helm. 'We rely on spirit and resilience and the boys have shown it. Everyone at the football club should take that on board going into the rest of the season.
“Staying in the Championship is a tough challenge, but if we put in performances like that, there's no reason we can't do it.”