Dan Marsh’s match report from Millwall’s 4-0 EFL Cup defeat to League One Reading

Millwall 0-4 Reading

BY DANIEL MARSH AT THE DEN

In truth, nobody will really shed any tears over another early exit from the EFL Cup. After three years of flirting with the Championship play-offs, people in SE16 now have far grander aspirations than a run deep into this tournament. However, the manner of this performance – and the chastening result – will still sting.

The fact that Millwall found themselves 1-0 down before the majority of people had even settled into their seats set the tone for the evening. The Lions had ample time to make amends and impose themself on an inexperienced Reading team, but that never really looked like happening – and instead, things just got progressively worse.

All of the things the Lions did right on and off the ball just a few days beforehand against Middlesbrough were non-existent against Ruben Selles’ side, who bullied their more experienced hosts pretty much from the off. In short, Millwall were as bad on Tuesday night as they were brilliant at the weekend.

Bartosz Bialkowski, making his first competitive appearance since January, has enjoyed more than his fair share of nights to remember at the Den. This sadly wasn’t one of them, but there were plenty of others in a blue shirt who were just as culpable for some of the visitors’ goals, which were all incredibly soft in their own different ways. Not everyone has the same amount of credit in the bank as Bialkowski, either, who has excelled for the majority of his Millwall career.

In years gone by, this Millwall team has been synonymous with a resolute rearguard and a lack of goals, but it feels as though the tide is starting to shift. The Lions looked uncharacteristically shaky during their poor end to the 2022-23 campaign and some of those frailties were on show again on Tuesday night. Gary Rowett’s side were ruthlessly exposed by a young, aggressive Reading team and looked a world away from the side that kept Middlesbrough comfortably at bay just a few days earlier.

In that game, the Lions were excellent on the ball – they were brave, tenacious and were rewarded with a glut of golden goalscoring opportunities. Goalmouth action in this game came at a premium until the introduction of Aidomo Emakhu on the hour, with the young Irishman doing his burgeoning reputation no harm with a handful of dangerous forays cutting in from the left-hand side.

By that point, though, the game was already up – Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan had scored twice with Charlie Savage adding a third via a 20-yard free-kick in front of a buoyant away end. Mamadi Camara compounded a miserable night for the Lions by bundling home a fourth in the dying embers of the match.

Millwall have been outplayed before and they will be again – particularly in the Championship, where others have an embarrassment of riches at their disposal. But on an occasion like this, where a senior Lions team were inexplicably outfought by what was effectively a League One’s U23 side, there can be no excuse. The onus is very much now on the team to make amends this weekend in a game which holds added significance for obvious reasons.

It’s far too early in the season to get carried away too much with anything we’ve seen so far – both the good and the bad – but the Lions’ recent record at the Den doesn’t make for pleasant reading if you include the tail end of last season. In truth, after fixing the away form which had plagued them in recent years, it was failing to win games at home which effectively killed Millwall’s play-off hopes during last term’s run-in.

It would be incredibly harsh to peg that down as a legitimate concern so early into a new campaign, but a performance and result befitting the occasion on Saturday would be very welcome – in more ways than one.

If that comes to pass then this match – mercifully – won’t live long in the memory. Hopefully, that proves to be the case.

BEST MOMENT: Aidomo Emakhu’s rapid run down the left which led to a decent save from Coniah Boyce-Clarke.

STAR MAN: Aidomo Emakhu. Another eye-catching cameo from the bench for the young Irish forward, who seems poised to enjoy a breakthrough campaign.