Leeds defender Charlie Cresswell: Championship highs and lows with Millwall are helping to massively develop me

Charlie Cresswell has already experienced the highs and lows of Championship football, so he was never going to get carried away by adding to his goal haul on Saturday.

The 20-year-old centre-back headed in Scott Malone’s corner to break the deadlock in the 2-0 win over Cardiff City.

And that means that Cresswell has scored three goals in six league matches, the kind of ratio that any striker would be content with.

The Leeds loanee enjoyed a dream debut, and first Den bow, as he scored both in the opening day victory against Stoke City.

But Cresswell was then punished for a misplaced pass at Sheffield United the following weekend, Sander Berge making it 2-0 to the Blades.

“Scoring two at Stoke and then losing to Sheff U the week after – you learn to take things as they come,” the England U21 international told the South London Press.

“You have to enjoy those good moments.

“My dad was down watching the game at the weekend. We went out and had a couple of drinks afterwards. But the next day I woke up and you’re ready, switched on. It seems like you can never really settle with what you do.

“Mistakes happen in football. It’s not about what happens to you, it’s about how you react to it.”

Cresswell is only one goal behind Jake Cooper and Murray Wallace’s total for the whole of the last league campaign.

The most a centre-back has scored  for the Lions in a Championship  season since the club’s promotion is six – Shaun Hutchinson (2019-20) and Cooper (2018-19).

Cresswell, Cooper and Wallace all  bunch together on the edge of the box before a corner kick comes in.

This time it was the youngster who emphatically met Scott Malone’s delivery.

“Every time Scottie has put in a ball I feel like I’m going to get on the end of it,” Cresswell told the South London Press. “If he can keep doing that hopefully I can keep producing.

“I just like to take in the flight of the ball. I start on the edge of the box and see where it is going. I like to arrive late and at full speed – I know it’s hard to stop me once I get momentum.

“I don’t set myself an actual number [target] because I think that’s just setting a limit. If I can push to be the best I can then we’ll take it from there.

“I loved Saturday. The team did really well, we passed the ball much better than we have been doing – we showed a lot more composure.

“We scored at the right times. The match could’ve gone either way, so to score at that time was crucial and really helped us.”

Cresswell also claimed the assist for Benik Afobe’s finish against Cardiff. His quickly-taken free-kick was adeptly brought under control by the forward, who produced an ice-cool finish past Ryan Allsop after nicking the ball inside City left-back Niels Nkounkou.

“That was all Benik,” said Cresswell. “If he hadn’t made that run then I wouldn’t have seen it.

“I’m buzzing for Benik. Benik is a top, top player and a top, top guy. To see him take that finish so well, I know he will kick on now – watch the goals bounce in.”
Cresswell came on after club captain Hutchinson suffered a groin tear likely to sideline him for up to a month.

It makes it even more likely the Preston-born defender will start at Sunderland tomorrow.

He has featured in six of Millwall’s opening eight Championship matches, only one of those not as a starter, but still seems at least a touch frustrated not to have more than 439 minutes under his belt.

“I’ve come down here to play and obviously you’re disappointed when you’re not playing,” he said. “But you’ve got to not let it affect you and take every game as it comes.

“It’s doing my development the world of good. There are loads of different types of players in this league – big players and little players. I’m not only growing as a person but as a player, dealing with the highs and lows of football.

“I’m learning different aspects. Defending out wide in a back three is something new to me because I’ve always played in a back four. You are defending in different areas. In a four you stay compact. In a back three you have to mark wingers or people out wide, it requires more defensive skill. It’s something I’m loving the challenge of.”

Cresswell describes The Den as “a proper football ground”. He added: “

“The fans are really passionate. They’ll get behind you and help you when things are going well. With that comes expectation. It’s really good as a young player to play at The Den – playing under pressure. Pressure makes diamonds.”