‘Tough to take’ – Blackburn boss John Eustace on Den defeat to Millwall

Blackburn Rovers manager John Eustace admitted defeat at The Den was hard to take as his side were beaten 1-0 by Millwall on Saturday afternoon.

Mihalio Ivanovic’s 96th-minute header handed the Lions their first win in six Championship games and halted Rovers’ six-game winning run, which included five consecutive clean sheets.

“It was a very difficult afternoon for both teams, the conditions were tough for both sides,” said Eustace.

“The way we defended was very pleasing. It’s something we do week in, week out. It was very disappointing to concede in the last minute.

“We tried to play some good football but the conditions really hampered that. We had two or three really good chances in the second half still which we didn’t take.”

Rovers had to finish the game with 10 men as Lewis Travis was forced off with injury. Eustace had already used his three windows for substitutions and so was unable to bring on a replacement for his captain.

“It was a big blow to lose Travis with 10, 15 minutes to go,” said Eustace. “But I still felt comfortable we weren’t going to concede. There was a lot of pressure, they put big players on which is what happens when you come here.

“The way we defended overall was very good but to concede in the last minute is very disappointing. Overall I felt a draw was a fair result so a defeat is tough to take.”