Karl Robinson hails Salford for sticking to plan in goalless draw with Cambridge

Salford head coach Karl Robinson heaped praise on his players after they battled to a goalless draw against Cambridge.

In a first half short of clear-cut chances, Kelly N’Mai came close to breaking the deadlock when he fired a low shot wide from inside the box.

Cambridge were in the ascendancy for most of the second period and James Brophy forced goalkeeper Matthew Young into a save with a powerful effort from distance.

The away side came closest to breaking the deadlock when Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu’s volley cannoned off the base of a post.

Adebola Oluwo headed wide from a corner as Salford went in search of a winner, but Cambridge comfortably held on to secure a point.

Robinson was delighted with the application his team showed to earn a point.

He said: “Although there were no goals, it was an excellent game and I thought we were very good.

“We probably had the best of the chances again, certainly with Kelly N’Mai’s miss in the first half.

“I am really pleased with the patience my players have shown. I felt during the game we were going to be the team to throw the point away, but the players stuck to the game plan really well.

“Cambridge are one of the best teams we have played against. Their back three were very confident and aggressive. We know how good Kylian Kouassi is because he spent last season on loan with us and Adebola Oluwo stood up to his physicality and was excellent.

“I know drawing 0-0 is not going to get more people to come to the ground. There might not have been glitz and glamour, but every single man left his energy on the field.

“A performance like this is all I can ask for as a manager and today we added to the tally of points we will have at the end of the season.”

Cambridge boss Neil Harris was pleased with his players’ efforts and felt the draw was a fair result.

He said: “I thought there were two really good sides going toe-to-toe. We controlled the last part of the game and limited them to nothing other than one chance in each half.

“We switched shape to a back three to get a press on the ball and defend our box. Across the 90-minute period, we put in a strong performance against a top side, so credit goes to the players for taking on so much information quickly.

“It allowed us to get players on the pitch who add athleticism, leadership, youthfulness and creativity. We had all of that today, just lacked that little bit of quality in the final third.

“Me and Karl had a great moment at the end of the game between two experienced managers, we are both very pleased with our sides.”