Summer signing Casper De Norre backed to build on impressive start to his Millwall career

Casper De Norre has been backed to build on the “excellent” start to his Millwall career.

That is the verdict of Lions manager Gary Rowett, who feels the 26-year-old midfielder will kick on even more as he adapts fully to Championship football.

Millwall signed De Norre from OH Leuven in the summer for an undisclosed fee.

The Belgian got his first assist in last weekend’s 2-2 draw against Hull City, his pass finished off by Joe Bryan.

De Norre was one of the Lions’ standout players on the afternoon as they produced a strong performance in the second period in SE16.

“Casper has been excellent,” Rowett told the South London Press. “He is a player that I really liked the look of when he was flagged up by our recruitment team.

“We were really pleased to get the deal done, although it was a little bit protracted we got there in the end.

“He has got better and better, physically and on the ball as well. He took two or three games to get up to the speed and intensity of the Championship. After the Middlesbrough game I think he said that he had done the distance before but not the intensity – he felt it in his quads around 60-70 minutes.

“He has helped us control games better – Rotherham was a good example and the second half against Hull. Everything goes through him. He’s got the ability to play between the lines, to open the game up and switch play.

“He’s a really good player and I think he’ll go on to be a fantastic player for us. He’ll get better and better the more Championship football he plays. He’s only played something like seven or eight Championship matches, which is nothing really.”