Four takeaways from Millwall’s 0-0 draw with Preston – teething problems and Burey staking claim for bigger role

BY DANIEL MARSH

Millwall were held to a frustrating goalless draw by Preston at the Den on Tuesday night.

The visitors spurned a golden chance to break the deadlock midway through the second half when Ben Whiteman struck the post from the penalty spot.

Despite upping the ante slightly after the break, the Lions failed to test Daniel Iversen enough and were forced to settle for a point.

Here are Daniel Marsh’s four takeaways from Tuesday night’s stalemate.

TEETHING PROBLEMS

The Lions’ new-look attack were deployed for the second time in a week against Preston, but they struggled to make the same impact that they did at the weekend against West Brom.

Benik Afobe and Mason Bennett were on the scoresheet against the Baggies, but neither could repeat that feat in midweek.

Afobe did have a couple of chances to trouble Iversen but, on both occasions, his touch badly let him down.

With Burke still short of match sharpness, Tuesday night showed that there’s still a long way to go before Millwall’s newly-assembled attack is ready to fire on a consistent basis.

THE MILLWALL WAY

Not for the first time this season, the Lions failed to record consecutive league wins.

After an impressive result against West Brom, the onus was on Gary Rowett’s men to go and back that up with another three-point haul against Preston.

But they struggled to dispatch Ryan Lowe’s side, who were barely troubled at all.

It was a major cause of deja vu for Millwall on Tuesday night – and it’s their inability to string back-to-back wins together that has realistically cost them another chance at cracking the top-six this term.

A LACK OF BRAVERY

Millwall have struggled to break teams down in the past, and once again, they had no luck in breaking down a stubborn Preston side.

The visitors were more than content to sit deep and frustrate the Lions, who introduced both Connor Mahoney and Jed Wallace on the hour to try and change things up.

But despite having a host of attacking players on the pitch, Millwall still couldn’t muster up the attacking guile required to clinch all three points.

Mahoney and Wallace did their part by dropping deep to try and get involved in the play.

The onus was really on Millwall’s back three and midfield pairing to be brave in possession – but too often the Lions opted to pick the safe pass.

 

BUREY MAKING WAVES

After returning from a loan stint at Hartlepool earlier this month, Tyler Burey has quickly muscled his way into the Lions’ first-team plans with a couple of impressive cameos off the bench.

And he caught the eye again after his late introduction against Preston.

His direct drives down the flanks are a real throwback, and you can sense the anticipation around the Den when the 21-year-old has the ball.

The likes of Wallace and Mahoney returned to the fold on Tuesday night, but Burey is getting harder and harder to ignore.

It feels like the ex-AFC Wimbledon youngster has to be on the cusp of being thrown in from the start sooner rather than later.