* The Unofficial "Official" Boro v Millwall Match-Day Thread *

r00fie1

Well-known member
Its that time again......

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Leo said today [Friday] that he knows how expensive it is for Boro fans to travel down to the Capital. He acknowledged the difficulties with the Railway Workers dispute, but assured the journo`s of [the fans]....."They will be there".
You know.(y)

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⚽
Those three points against Brum - on a mild Teesside night under the lights - were more important than the quality of the game, the crowd or the opinion of watching media. For one thing, the game drew a line between the last incumbent and our "interim" Manager. As Leo said about his appointment when asked about Wilder (?), he replied "....that was the past.....history!" No misunderstanding or ambiguity there then.

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The players seemed able to express themselves and play with some fluidity. It wasnt pretty. It was a clean sheet. Job done.
When asked about the style of play, Chuba wasnt going to take any criticism: "[in the past].....we`ve been playing pretty football....." stressing a win is more important than looking "pretty". He didnt care if we play it "ugly! A win is a win - and he did score the winning goal after all - a typical poachers goal at that.
It has to be said that some of us [me included] have been a little cynical and disingenuous about Chuba and his ability to perform in the Championship. But he`s proven us wrong - with his come-back this season - against all odds. Out in the cold - looking like he was either going back out on loan or consigned to the Boro "bin". He`s shown he has the sheer determination and balls to fight for a place in the team. He`s not just talked the talk - but gone out on the green stuff and scored three important goals. If you like stats - they make interesting reading - he`s a long way ahead of anyone else in a red shirt at the moment. The player that Warnock dumped after bringing him to the club, who appeared to be left in the Wilderness, is critical to our upward trajectory. He is very humble in front of the bright lights of local and national media. For a man we thought was heading out the door - he may yet stil play a big part in this season. Maybe its his character and achievements on the pitch which should make other players sit up and take notice?!

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So its back to the "bread and butter" at The New Den, against a Millwall side whose results in front of goal are not entirely dissimilar from ours:
Charlie Creswell has scored three, but the Lions danger-man is Scott Malone with four assists.
Last time out they drew 1-1 away to Rotherham with a Man-of-the-Match performance from midfielder Zian Flemming - who scored with a 25 yard rocket net buster!

"History...."
 
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STATS


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TOP SCORERS - Millwall:

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TOP SCORERS - Boro:

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MATCH PREVIEW:

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Although Gary Rowett’s Millwall failed to win for a third time in four games with a 1-1 draw at Rotherham last time out, he hailed his players for cutting the deficit to avoid defeat and stated afterwards that “there were lots of things to be enthused by”.

That was only Millwall’s second stalemate of the league season (W4, L6), but it could be quickly followed up with a third considering they’ve drawn five of their last nine league meetings with Middlesbrough (W1, D5, L3).

Returning to The Den will be a bonus for Millwall as their four wins from six league games here so far (L2) accounts for a whopping 86% of their total points haul. Even so, Millwall haven’t had it their own way on their own turf, conceding first in three of their last five home league games while having to pick themselves up to win 2-1 after allowing an equaliser against Blackpool in their previous match at The Den.
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The post-Wilder era at Middlesbrough got off to a winning start as popular coach Leo Percovich oversaw a 1-0 win over Birmingham in his first game in charge. Ahead of that game, the Uruguayan whipped up support with a strong rallying cry to get behind the team - “we stick together because we’re forged in steel and iron, and when things are going wrong, nobody cracks, nobody crumbles”.
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Percovich
is set to remain in charge for this game as the managerial search continues, so with a new found passion, we could see a much different Middlesbrough performance than those seen at the end of Wilder’s tenure.

Translating that passion into a first away league win since April is now the goal (D3, L5 since), which is their longest wait for a travelling league win since an 11-game run almost three years ago!

Players to watch: Millwall’s club record signing Zian Flemming is finally finding his feet since his move from the Eredivisie and has scored the team opener in two of his last three appearances. As for Middlesbrough, Chuba Akpom announced his return from injury with the winner last time out; he now seeks his first away goal for the club since April 2021!

Hot stat: Over half of Gary Rowett’s 11 personal H2Hs with Middlesbrough ended level (W2, D6, L3).

 
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It's always a cracking good game at Millwall.
A proper championship club with proper fans.
I hope Leo gets them up for it.
I want to see a team full of heart.
Come on Boro
 
FROM THE PRESS:

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Championship preview: Millwall vs. Middlesbrough – team news and predicted XI as the Lions return from their travels​


The Lions are looking to build on their impressive home record as they host struggling Boro​

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IF there’s one team who suffer from travel sickness in the Championship, it’s probably Millwall.

The Lions have picked up just two points on the road so far this season and are without an away win since the start of March. They might be feeling a bit dizzy after facing two long-distance trips in the space of just four days this week.

Gary Rowett’s side return to The Den with a point from their matches against Blackburn Rovers and Rotherham United, with many fans still feeling incredibly frustrated that they’ve not seen their team win on their travels in their last 13 competitive matches. It’s seen them drop to 16th in the table, which is well below where they were expected to be at this point in the campaign.

In theory, returning to The Den after an arduous run of away fixtures is a good thing, even if it’s less than 72 hours after their 1-1 draw at the New York Stadium. However, Middlesbrough will likely provide a much tougher test than many would’ve predicted them to as recently as a week ago.

That’s because Boro opted to part ways with manager Chris Wilder on Monday morning after a disastrous start to the season. He left the club in 22nd place when he departed just two days after their 1-0 loss away to Coventry City.

Millwall boss Gary Rowett sympathises with the former Sheffield United manager, but he claims that this is simply how the managerial roundabout works for clubs that are expected to challenge for promotion to the Premier League.

“People don’t realise that most of us managers have been around the block for a while,” he told NewsAtDen.

“We know how it works. If you don’t get results, particularly at places where there’s an expectation level, then at some point that usually leads to a manager losing their job.

“I can’t really comment on what’s happened up there because I don’t know, I’m not up there. All I can say is that Chris is a really good guy, I really like him, he’ll bounce back into management whenever he wants to, I’m sure.

“I’m pretty sure also that he’ll be disappointed that they started as poorly as they have. If you look at the likes of West Brom, Middlesbrough, and even the likes of ourselves to a certain degree, we’d have hoped to have been a little bit higher up the league at this point in the season, but particularly those two clubs, when you look at their capabilities.

“Chris is a good guy, I’ve got a lot of time for him and hopefully he’ll get back in whenever he really wants.”

Millwall have seen this story before, as recently as Wednesday evening in fact. Their match against Rotherham was Matt Taylor’s first in charge of the Millers, having joined from Exeter City around 24 hours earlier. However, Middlesbrough are yet to appoint a new permanent manager, with Leo Percovich set to take charge of the the first-team when they travel to The Den tomorrow afternoon.

It makes the Lions’ job a bit harder, although it’s far from impossible. The Uruguayan set up Boro’s team on Wednesday night as they beat Birmingham City at the Riverside Stadium thanks to Chuba Akpom’s early goal. It gives Rowett’s men something to work with and prepare for, even if there is an air of uncertainty.

The visitors’ approach shouldn’t be any different, however, as they are certain to stick with their preferred 3-5-2 formation this weekend. There’s significant pressure on the likes of Ryan Giles and Anfernee Dijksteel to provide width in the team, with Akpom and Fulham loanee Rodrigo Muñiz set to lead the line together.

It does cast some doubt over Millwall’s approach, with Rowett changing away from his preferred back five against Rotherham in midweek. The Lions boss said that he had “nothing to lose” by making the change, but refused to rule out reverting to a 5-2-3 or 5-3-2 and matching Boro’s shape.

As was the case on Wednesday, Rowett will have his entire squad available except Ryan Leonard, who’s still recovering from a hamstring injury. Millwall are hopeful that he can return to training in two weeks’ time, having missed their last seven Championship games.

The Lions left Charlie Cresswell and Scott Malone out of the squad for their last match, so it remains to be seen whether they will return to the team on Saturday and who might drop out of the side if they do.


Millwall predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Long; McNamara, Hutchinson, Cooper, Wallace; Mitchell, Saville; Burey, Flemming, Bennett; Voglsammer

 
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Millwall:

Millwall were originally founded back in 1885 under a different name – Millwall Rovers – and, since then, they’ve called a number of places home. The early years were spread across North Greenwich, The Athletic Grounds, the Lord Nelson Ground and, the first of them all, a literal dump of a ground on Glengall Road. Their next stadium though would become a name synonymous with Millwall - "The Den".
 
Scrapbook:

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Teddy Sheringham and Tony Cascarino. Teddy was a top draw footballer who played for England and Manchester United.


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Terry Hurlock - a man not to be taken lightly.


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Neil Harris - a "wall" legend.


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Lee Gregory was on course to join Millwall`s top ten all-time goal scorers, but left to join Stoke in 2019. After a loan spell at Derby - he now plays for Sheffield Wednesday.


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Steve Morrison had three spells at the Wall, but every time we played them - he seemed to be in the team. He is in their top 5 goalscorers of all time.


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Barry Kitchener spent his entire career at Millwall. From 1966 to 1982, he made over 500 appearances for the lions. A record which is hard to equal in today`s game.
 
Millwall Notes:
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The Lions return to SE16 after two consecutive away games and will look to build on a victory over Blackpool last time out at home.
Shaun Hutchinson and Mason Bennett featured back in the matchday squad against Rotherham United and look set to keep their places, whilst Ryan Leonard remains the only absentee. Gary Rowett made six changes for Wednesday's trip to the New York Stadium and it remains to be seen whether the manager will opt for the same XI or make changes. Should he wish to do, the likes of Benik Afobe, Callum Styles, George Evans and Jamie Shackleton were on the bench in Yorkshire and could deputise

[https://www.millwallfc.co.uk/news/2022/october/07/preview---millwall-v-middlesbrough/]
 
Good Morning young man.
Its a nice crisp morning - suns out.
Good day for a football match.
Hows them algorithms thingy`s ?
It has a boro win today predicted, with a low confidence, so at least it will reflect this board. Under 2.5 goals too. So 1-0 to Millwall it is then!

I fancy us today. I am hoping midweek did something for the confidence. It was a mediocre performance, at best, but 3 points. I fancy us every week though, now I think about it.

I would expect Akpom and Muniz to start developing an understanding. I absoloutely think they are our best pairing at the minute and I am looking forward to seeing how that develops.
 
Team apparently:

Steffen

Jones McNair Fry Lenihan Bola
Crooks Howson McGree
Muniz Akpom

Shame for Hackney if that's true and I can only assume Giles is injured.
 
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