Millwall boss on why he expected Alex Mitchell to be loan success at St Johnstone

Alex Mitchell scored for St Johnstone against Celtic on Saturday – and Millwall manager Gary Rowett always thought the centre-back would do well for the Scottish Premiership club.

Former Lions assistant boss Callum Davidson has taken a number of players on loan from his old club with Danny McNamara, in particular, a success story.

Crystal Palace goalkeeper Remi Matthews, who is also on a temporary deal with St Johnstone, has talked about how it would be a “massive” boost if Mitchell stays beyond January.

It looked as if the defender had secured a point for the Saints with an equaliser in the third minute of stoppage time. But Georgios Giakoumakis struck with virtually the last kick of the game as Celtic prevailed 2-1.

Mitchell, 21, played 30 matches on loan for Leyton Orient last season.

“It was a good opportunity for him,” said Rowett. “He had opportunities in League Two and the SPL. He chose St Johnstone, I think us knowing Cal [Davidson] and the opportunity to play in games like Saturday, against Celtic, and against Rangers. Suddenly you’re on a much bigger stage against much better opponents.

“He had the chance to develop his game and prove his worth in those type of games. So far he’s been excellent. We’ve watched the vast majority of his games and I’ve spoken to Cal several times. The general feeling is he has acquitted himself really well. We sort of thought he would, his mentality is excellent – he’s one of those lads who just wants to get better. He’s a great professional.

“While there are still bits he needs to work on and needs to keep improving – game time and those different challenges every week have put him in a good position.

“The fact they are talking about wanting to keep him beyond January suggests that big Al has done really well. That’s the position you want to be in as a player – you want to impress and get game time.”