View From The Town End: Millwall

It’s a clash of two new managers on Saturday as Mark Bowen’s Reading take on Gary Rowett’s Millwall. Both gaffers have been brought in to reenergise teams that finished near the bottom three last season, but didn’t kick on this season under the managers that kept them up.

To find out more about what went wrong under Neil Harris at the Den, we spoke to Lucas Ball from Millwall site News at Den. Find him on Twitter here, and NAD here.

What have you made of Millwall’s start to the season?

Points wise we’re in a better position than this time last season, but fans grew frustrated with the style of play. It was direct and sometimes seemed like we’d run out of ideas, no matter which formation we were in.

What went wrong for previous manager Neil Harris?

Millwall have always been at their best when they’ve not cared who they’re playing. We don’t give other teams respect as a result, but we started doing that under Harris towards the end, regularly adapting to suit the opposition. We were so successful in the first season that we came back into the Championship when we were just playing our way.

Is Gary Rowett the right man to take you forward?

I think so. He’s a decent tactician, and has shown adaptability previously. He’s also done well at clubs like Burton and Birmingham on shoestring budgets, so here’s hoping he can repeat that success in south London.

What are your main strengths?

At the moment, we’ve got two players who are in top form: Jed Wallace and Tom Bradshaw. They’re the two main reasons at our attacking output has increased since Harris left. Wallace’s pace and direct running will cause plenty of issues for the Royals’ back line.

And weaknesses?

I’m still not totally convinced by our ability to hold onto leads. We concede a lot of late goals.

How do you see the game going, and what will the score be?

I think we’ll set up relatively defensively to start and exploit Wallace’s pace and then grow into the game. After a defensive start, I could see us either dominating or having our backs to the wall.

Reading 0-1 Millwall.