Neil Harris on Millwall’s 50-year wait for a win at Norwich City – and the possibility of team changes at Carrow Road
BY RICHARD CAWLEY
richard@slpmedia.co.uk
Millwall can end a 50-year wait for a win at Carrow Road tomorrow – but manager Neil Harris is paying no attention to previous trips to Norwich City.
The Lions have yet to get a victory away from The Den this season and the record books show that this weekend’s destination has not been a happy hunting ground.
Since a 3-0 win at Carrow Road on November 2 1968 the South London outfit have lost 13 of their 18 subsequent visits – twice being thumped 6-1.
“These kind of stats build up over time but I look at them as a challenge,” said Harris. “It is about setting records and breaking boundaries.
“It’s a ground for us to go to and try and win a game of football, that’s all. I certainly don’t have to worry about the past.
“It makes us more determined but it is also a club stat – I’m more interested in my team on Saturday. In football there are always hurdles and you need to break them down.
“In the Norwich games I have watched they have not necessarily been hugely superior to their opponents but have found a way to win – that’s impressive in itself.
“They haven’t conceded a huge amount of goals and have been dangerous on the counter attack.
“What’s good for us is they are clear favourites to win the game, there are huge expectations on them – that’s when we were at our best last season. We can go and play with a little bit more freedom.
“I expect and demand a better performance than we gave at Brentford.”
Harris showed faith in the same starting 11 who had eased past Ipswich Town for last weekend’s 2-0 loss at Brentford.
But changes could be made tomorrow with winger Jed Wallace likely to come into the line-up.
“There hadn’t been a lot wrong in the five games before that and it is easy to get carried away and make wholesale changes,” said Harris. “There needs to be a calm thought process which will rub off on the players.
“Our problem at Brentford was not without the ball but with it – our composure and quality was very poor.”