‘Emphatic response’ – Millwall pull themselves back into Championship play-off equation

Millwall kept their Championship play-off hopes alive with a commanding 3-1 victory over Norwich City at The Den on Easter Monday, bouncing back strongly from their Good Friday defeat at Blackburn.

Head coach Alex Neil, facing his former club, was full of praise for the Lions’ response after their Ewood Park reverse, as a brace from Mihailo Ivanovic and a goal from Femi Azeez secured a fourth consecutive home win.

With other results going their way, Millwall are three points behind sixth-placed Coventry City ahead of Saturday’s clash with Swansea City.

Ivanovic opened the scoring inside eight minutes when Azeez’s driven cross ricocheted off the Serbian’s knee and into the bottom corner.

Azeez doubled Millwall’s lead in the 39th minute, heading in George Saville’s free-kick at the near post.

Norwich found a way back into the contest before half-time. Shane Duffy rose highest to nod in Jacob Wright’s corner at the back post.

The Canaries failed to build on the momentum after the break and Ivanovic added his second and Millwall’s third goal in the 69th minute, heading home another Saville set-piece to take his tally for the season to 12 goals in all competitions.

“Friday was just a game too far for us in terms of intensity that we’ve put into so many matches,” said Neil.

“Physically, we are stretched as a squad.

“A lot of the lads that have come back have played lots of games—it’s been tough, but they’ve done so well, so it’s hard to be critical.

“We were all disappointed with Blackburn.

“However, when we’ve had a setback, the response has been emphatic.

“That was one of our best performances in terms of effort and chances created. We were the dominant team throughout the match, and Norwich are a good side. They’ve got good attacking players, they’re the second-highest goalscorers in the league, so that threat is always there. But we had to focus on winning the game—for obvious reasons.”

Neil was quick to highlight the structure of his team compared to the one that went out at Blackburn.

“I felt like the balance was much, much better today,” he explained.

“We didn’t play enough at Blackburn. If you don’t play enough, you don’t drag another midfield player through and they stay intact. We were too direct and didn’t win enough duels. Today, the two centre-forwards were a real handful because we played behind them and dragged an extra midfield player out.

“The wide players offered something different—Tristan overlaps Luke (Cundle) on one side, and Zak (Sturge) supports from behind on the other. Zak was starting his first game at this level and George [Evans] was playing his second having just conceded four away from home. We’ve had loads to contend with, but we haven’t cried about it or felt sorry for ourselves. We’ve dusted ourselves down, put the lads that are available into the team, and they’ve done brilliantly.”

It’s now 11 Championship goals for Ivanovic since his move from Serbia in the summer and Neil praised his striker.

“He’s grown as a player,” the head coach said. “He’s leading the line better, his understanding of when to go and press has improved, and his movement in the box is something I’ve been on to him about since I came here.

“You can see now, with the chances he’s getting, that’s improved hugely.

“We need to bear in mind—this kid is 20, he’s come from a foreign country, and he’s had to learn all about the league. That’s 12 goals now, which is a great achievement for him personally. But for us, we have to credit both strikers. Josh Coburn was outstanding today, and they bounced off each other really well.”

PICTURES: KEITH GILLARD