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Port Vale boss Darrell Clarke reckons Wanderers will be “right up there this season” following the goalless draw at Vale Park.
The Whites had to play nearly an hour with 10 men after Ricardo Santos was shown a controversial second yellow card.
Amadou Bakayoko also had a big shout for a goal ruled out by the officials, although close-up replays suggest it might have crossed the line.
Clarke says Wanderers defended well after the red card and tipped the Whites to be near the top of League One come the end of the season.
“There are positives and negatives with every game,” he told the club’s YouTube channel.
“Jack (Stevens) has pulled an incredible save off early in the game but we were on the front foot 11-v-11. The game was evenly balanced.
“They looked dangerous from set-plays but we looked dangerous, albeit lacking that final ball at times.
“We had a couple of opportunities ourselves and then they go down to 10 men, and we are just looking for that little bit more quality in the final third.
“We have created enough chances to score a couple of goals today and for different reasons, that has not quite fallen for us.
“But we will take the positive of a clean sheet against a team who I think will be right up there this season.”
The Vale chief admits it is frustrating not to win despite having a man advantage for a significant period of the game.
“I see us getting better, but we are nowhere near the finished article," he added.
“You are never pleased not to win when a team is down to 10 men for the minutes they were.
“However, I saw a lot of aspects that pleased me. We have to keep building because we know we still have loads of work to do.
“We are trying to establish ourselves as a League One club first and foremost, and this is another point added.
“We had a lot of territory in the second half and a lot of ball, so on another day we score goals.
“I thought it was a good game to watch - end to end and they defended well, so you have to credit them.”
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