‘It was a poor game lacking in quality’ – Millwall head coach Edwards on 1-0 defeat to Cardiff City
Joe Edwards bemoaned a lack of quality in the final third as Millwall were beaten 1-0 by Cardiff City on Saturday afternoon.
The Lions fell to a third defeat in four games after losing late on in South Wales.
“In general it was a pretty poor game lacking in quality from both teams,” said head coach Edwards. “Certainly the feeling I got from around the stadium is that a lot of people would echo that in that first half. Both teams created very little.
“It looked like a bit of a stalemate at times. Without the ball, we both set up in similar ways. It looked like two teams that were quite well-prepared for what each other would do – that meant it was going to be about players being difference makers on the pitch, showing that quality and those moments to create anything. Both teams were lacking that, particularly with us.”
The decision-making from some players was also a disappointment for the Millwall boss.
He said. “At times it was early in our build-up play, at times it was when we did break through the lines and did look like we would progress. It was just that next decision to make another forward pass or a clean pass that would progress us up the pitch. We got the decision wrong or the pass was lacking in quality and we just weren’t able to gain any momentum in our attack, despite the fact we had some comfortable spells in the game.
“Matty Sarkic had next to nothing to do in the first half. We had a fair amount of the ball away from home in spells without ever really troubling them.
“So a disappointing performance, not for the want of effort and application. We were well-organised in the main but just lack a quality or anything to make the difference has cost us today.”
As the game was a very low-quality affair the Lions boss was asked if it was a contest that would always be settled by the first goal.
“I don’t think you can ever say that,” he said. “Games can often surprise you. Look at our game against Sheffield Wednesday. We get our first goal and then we go on and on again as we grew in confidence.
“It feels like a group that are lacking a bit of belief, which is obviously my job to stick with the players and work with them on how we can snap out of this.
“But when we have our first attack that looks like it could be promising and then it breaks down, it does look like it’s weighing on us a bit too much. So we even have chances after that first goal.
“The way we lose the game – the goal that cost us the game – is disappointing for us.
“Notoriously we’re strong with set-pieces. We have players out there like Hutchinson, Wes Harding and Murray Wallace and defending the box is a strength of theirs. So to lose a game on a set-piece is really disappointing.”