Millwall boss on whether Southampton friendly will give a strong hint to starting line up for Championship opener againstWatford

Millwall head coach Neil Harris is not expecting his starting 11 in Saturday’s friendly against Southampton to be exactly the one he goes with in the club’s Championship opener against Watford the following weekend.

The visit of the Saints, promoted to the Premier League via the play-offs in May, is the final tune-up fixture before the league campaign starts.

“I don’t envisage the starting 11 against Southampton being the starting 11 that starts against Watford,” Harris told the South London Press, when asked if his teamsheet will give a strong indication of which way he is leaning for the clash against the Hornets.

“That is probably 50-50 in how teams do it (naming their first-choice side). The important thing for me is that the group has gradually got more experienced as we’ve gone through pre-season.

“I think we saw that with the team selection in Spain. Even though we took four younger lads the game time is becoming more sparse for them as we go through – that is because we want to get minutes into the senior players but also appreciate who is likely to affect the pitch in the first half of the season.

“That will be telling when we play behind closed doors against Colchester (a 1-0 loss earlier this week) and then Southampton, two games – it will be a senior group.

“I talked openly at the end of the trip to Spain about how Alfie Massey and Tom Leahy, in particular, have caught the eye. They continue to train with the first team.

“Ultimately game understanding, combination and relationship is particularly key on the pitch now – the training pitch and match minutes. The team selection for those games will be more senior led.”

Southampton were the opposition for Harris’ first match back at Millwall after replacing Joe Edwards.

Japhet Tanganga and Zian Flemming scored as the Saints, so impressive on home turf, were defeated 2-1.

“I’m delighted Southampton got promoted – they are a very good side,” said Harris. “It was a backs-to-the-walls Millwall performance that merited us the three points because ultimately they had very few chances in the game.

“It will be a stern test for us because they are a Premier League side now and they were exceptional in the Championship last season. They are going to completely dominate possession. It is a great test for our defensive shape.

“We’re setting ourselves up for the final week to give us different challenges because that is what we’re going to face over the course of the season. Watford are a possession-based team and that’s our opening fixture. They will want 60-70 per cent possession and we’re going to have to impose ourselves at home but have a fantastic defensive structure to be competitive.”