Former Rangers striker Ryan Hardie missed a penalty against Chelsea for Plymouth Argyle deep into the second half of extra time in their FA Cup clash which would have levelled the match and possibly forced a penalty shootout.
Plymouth took a shock lead against the reigning European champions through Macaulay Gillesphey and looked set to head into the interval leading before Cesar Azpilicueta equalised just before the break.
The League One side stayed firm and managed to take the game to extra time. Although Marcos Alonso scored to give Chelsea the lead, Plymouth was awarded a penalty with three minutes remaining.
Ryan Hardie was brought on in the second half and he had the chance to send the match to penalties and give the third-tier side a shot at ousting the Premier League club.
It wasn’t to be for the Scot as Kepa guessed the right way and saved the penalty and Chelsea went on to win 2-1 and secure their passage into the next round.
Ryan Hardie has been in excellent form for Plymouth this season
The 24-year-old has scored 12 goals and grabbed four assists for the club in all competitions this season as the side sits just outside the playoff spots as they hold aspirations of returning to the Championship for the first time since 2010.
Hardie didn’t quite make the most of his talent at Rangers, featuring for the side in the Championship initially, before loan spells at Raith, Livingston, and St Mirren. He moved to Blackpool before ending up at the Pilgrims from there and has been a success.
It would have been another piece of FA Cup magic had Hardie scored the penalty against Chelsea but unfortunately, it wasn’t to be. The striker will be making sure he atones for the miss by trying to steer the club to promotion.
In other news, Rangers have been sent an ominous warning by Hearts midfielder Cammy Devlin ahead of tomorrow’s crunch tie.
