Millwall boss Alex Neil hoping to maintain strong derby record as Palace FA Cup tie looms
Alex Neil is hoping his record of doing well in derbies continues this weekend when his Millwall side face Crystal Palace.
The two South London clubs square off at Selhurst Park in a Saturday lunchtime kick-off in the fifth round of the FA Cup.
It is a first taste for Neil of a proper derby encounter, with the Lions making their first visit to Palace since 2012.
Eagles fans often claim that they do not see Millwall as a main rival but in the opening minutes of their win over Doncaster in the previous round their away support chanted: “F*** off Millwall, South London is ours”.
Asked about that, Neil told the South London Press: “When you’re in the Premier League, they’re operating at that level and they’re going to play it down. But I can assure you that on the day they will be desperate to win. So will we. It will be a good match.
“I think my record in derbies, for most of the clubs I have been at, has been really good, so I don’t ever avoid emotion or what it means to the fans.
“It should have that extra incentive for the players, so it’s just important that the players don’t get carried away. That’s really the limit I will put on it – understanding it is more important than a normal game.
“Norwich versus Ipswich was probably the biggest one I was involved in. Particularly the fact it was a semi-final of the play-offs to get to the Premier League. I played Blackburn when I was at Preston – they were big games as well.
“I think they (Norwich) have had a big of hoodoo over Ipswich for a number of years and they haven’t broken it yet. When I joined, Ipswich hadn’t beaten Norwich for seven or eight years. Thankfully that tradition continued and I never lost to Ipswich.
“We drew 1-1 at their place and then beat them at our place. We got to the final and knocked them out, which would have been a nice feeling for the fans.”
So is it a free hit for Millwall against a side that has been in the top flight for 12 seasons?
“I don’t think it’s a free hit, but the pressure is more on Palace than it is on us,” said Neil. “Hence the reason when we played Dagenham, the pressure was on us rather than them.
“There will definitely be more scrutiny on Palace in terms of expectancy than there will be on Millwall. That’s an external thing. Internally, for us, we want to go and perform well. We have certain standards that we want to uphold. Hopefully we can go and produce.”
PICTURE: ALAMY
