FA Cup exit only leaves main course of the Championship for hungry Lions – with Leeds tonight the start of a tasty run in February

MILLWALL 0
SHEFFIELD UNITED 2
Besic 62 Norwood 84
BY RICHARD CAWLEY AT THE DEN

No controversy. No complaints. No regrets. Sometimes at the end of a match you just have to accept the better team won.

Sheffield United had only lost at Liverpool and Manchester City this season. And it rarely looked as if Millwall would be able to add their name to that esteemed list.

The Lions have bigger fish to fry tonight when they head to Leeds United. As things stand, the Championship play-offs are an attainable goal.

And that ensured that Jed Wallace, Shaun Hutchinson, Mahlon Romeo and Tom Bradshaw did not start in Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round tie.

Millwall have seven Championship fixtures in February and this was the one genuine opportunity to rest a few of the key men before heading into a pretty unrelenting schedule.

The partnership of Jed Wallace and Romeo down the Lions right has been an attacking strength of this side. Taking both out of the starting line-up was always liable to have an effect.

The Lions have been in strong defensive form of late and it took something special to put them behind at the weekend.

Bartosz Bialkowski went airborne to try and keep out Mo Besic’s 25-yard strike but could do nothing about it soaring past him and into the net.

The Bosnian international, on a season-long loan from Everton, was about to be substituted. That changed when he took advantage of a little bit of time and space to whip a left-footed long-ranger home.

United doubled their advantage with six minutes to play as Ollie Norwood arrowed a low finish past the Poland goalkeeper.

Again the marking was a little lacking, but you couldn’t fault the quality of the strike.

The margin of defeat could have been heavier. James Brown, making his first start of the campaign and only second appearance of the campaign, cleared off the line from Billy Sharp in the first period.

Bialkowski managed to deny Sharp and Leon Clarke in the closing stages as the Blades cut through opposition who were leaving gaps as they searched for the goal which would have made the closing stages interesting.

But those Millwall fans who headed for the exit after Norwood’s goal made the right call, at least in the sense they didn’t miss a fightback.

South London interest in the competition is over.  The Lions have knocked out seven Premier League teams since the 1992-93 season when the top flight was rebranded. Three of those came in the 2016-17 campaign when Bournemouth, Watford and Leicester all lost at The Den. Maybe they would have added to the list if they had taken their best chance of the tie in the eighth minute.

Aiden O’Brien used an arm to fend off Phil Jagielka’s attempts to clear Jake Cooper’s ball forward. And the attacker showed composure inside the box to cut inside Jack O’Connell. But it was let down by his finish, curling the ball fairly tamely for Dean Henderson to make the save.

O’Brien held up a placatory hand to apologise for not passing to Matt Smith, but really he had every right to take the chance on himself. He has been a good finisher for the Lions, but on this occasion it went down as a poor attempt.

Gary Rowett made five changes to his Millwall team – the same as Sheffield United.

That included starting Billy Mitchell, 18, alongside Jayson Molumby, 20, in midfield.

Mitchell had a good game, arguably the Lions’ best performer on the day. James Brown made only his second appearance of the campaign – and first start – instead of Romeo. The young full-back, 22, did a decent enough defensive job, not only denying Sharp in the first period but also producing an impeccably timed tackle on Luke Freeman when a Molumby crossfield pass was intercepted.

Bradshaw, Jon Dadi Bodvarsson and Wallace were all introduced in the final 19 minutes of normal time but Sheffield United’s professionalism saw them become the first club to beat Millwall in normal time at The Den since Wycombe Wanderers on December 5, 2015.

Lions fans might have watched the FA Cup draw on BBC1 last night, but only to see who they could have faced.

But an exit from this competition doesn’t hurt so badly when there is still so much to play for.

Eighteen league matches is a definite. And how they fare over a sapping February will go a long way to telling us if Rowett’s Millwall have what it takes to last the pace.

The Championship is a marathon, not a sprint. We’re coming into the period where the pace is dialled up.

First up is the white-hot noise of Elland Road. Second v eighth. Then Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough – the Owls are 10th but in touching distance of the top six themselves. Home to leaders West Brom. Home to third-placed Fulham, defensively more resilient with the addition of Michael Hector. Away to Preston, ensconced in that final play-off spot. No wonder Rowett described it post-match on Saturday as a “a huge four weeks of football”.

The Championship has always been the main course for Millwall. And it’s sure appetising right now.