Four takeaways from Millwall’s 2-2 draw at Birmingham City – play-off hopes just about still alive but defensive solidity needs to return

Millwall salvaged a point in the 98th minute to draw 2-2 against Birmingham City on Saturday afternoon.

The Lions went behind when Juninho Bacuna put the Blues ahead before Oliver Burke equalised for the South London club with 20 minutes remaining.

Lyle Taylor re-established the Midlands’ side lead from the penalty spot before Benik Afobe made no mistake from the spot with seconds remaining.

Here are Kai Bennett’s Four Takeaways:

RESILIENCE A BIG PLUS

The Lions haven’t won at St Andrew’s in their last three attempts now – drawing all three – as that ground has become a little bit of a tough place for Millwall to visit recently.

However, it could have been a lot worse than a draw. The South London club looked like they were going to head back down the M40 with nothing before Afobe’s penalty late on.

After Millwall went behind for the second time, they did give everything to get back into the game and that paid off in the end.

Jake Cooper was stuck up front and Gary Rowett brought on Mason Bennett and Tyler Burey, which meant Millwall were playing with four attackers.

That eventually paid off as Cooper was the one that was fouled, referee Leigh Doughty pointed to the spot.

IMPACT OF SPEED

The return of Mason Bennett and the pace of Oliver Burke worked a treat. There were countless times where the duo were put through and that caused Birmingham’s defence real issues.

Burke was only dispossessed once and won three aerial duels. The Sheffield United loanee showed his worth defensively as well – winning two tackles.

Bennett came on in the 63rd minute and made an instant impact, it was his cross that was nodded down to Burke who tapped home to level the scores.

Although, the Lions weren’t able to get all three points, the pace of Burke and Bennett will be a real weapon for the last two games of the season.

LAPSE OF CONCENTRATION AN ISSUE

The Lions defence has had a bit of a habit of conceding sloppy goals recently – which looks down to a concentration issue rather than being opened up.

Millwall were 2-1 up against Luton a couple of weeks ago before conceding late on to draw 2-2. Only three days later, the Lions conceded straight after half time against Swansea which ended in a 1-0 defeat.

On Saturday, straight after the restart, Millwall’s back three had three chances to clear before it eventually fell to Bacuna to power home.

In the last two games of the season, it’s key the Lions’ back five get their defensive resoluteness back if they want to make the play-offs.

SEASON STILL ALIVE

Ideally, Millwall would have picked up all three points at St Andrew’s and would be very close to the play-off positions with two games to go.

Despite that, the Lions are still only three points off the top six and two wins against Peterborough and Bournemouth in the last two would give Gary Rowett’s side a real chance.

The average number of points needed to make the top six has been 72 in recent years – and Millwall can still make that tally.

Their final fixture at The Den takes place on Saturday and it is crucial the Lions pick up maximum points against the already relegated Posh before a tough fixture on the South Coast to finish.