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Southwarknews 5mos ago
Preview: Swansea vs. Millwall – The Lions end their season in Wales as they look to leapfrog their opponents and claim…
Source:Southwarknews

MILLWALL go to Wales in search of a fifth consecutive win in their final game of the Championship season.

In the blink of an eye the Lions have gone from error-prone relegation-battlers to the league's in-form side.

The end of the season has come just as Millwall are clicking into gear and rediscovering their ability to navigate England's most unpredictable league.

Neil Harris has not beaten Swansea in four attempts as manager. Image: Millwall FCNeil Harris has not beaten Swansea in four attempts as manager. Image: Millwall FC Neil Harris will take much of the credit for the turnaround and he will be the first to remind his players that this end-of-season clash against Swansea City is not the dead rubber it may first appear.

Millwall can make up three places in the Championship and leapfrog Sunderland, Watford and Swansea if they win and other results go their way.

While it is not the final day drama fans experienced last year when the Lions were fighting for a play-off place, it does offer a chance to climb to their highest league position since September.

Swansea will have different ideas as they look to end a middling season on a high.

Michael Duff was sacked after winning just five of his nineteen games in charge and struggling to build upon the foundations laid by predecessor Russell Martin.

Luke Williams was appointed head coach at the beginning of January and has already experienced plenty of ups and downs in his first four months in south Wales.

The 43-year-old is a rising star in English coaching and a year ago led Notts County to promotion to League Two via the play-offs after a dramatic fight for the National League title against Wrexham.

He currently has the Swans on a four-game unbeaten run which bodes well for next season when fans will expect a more competitive campaign.

They will also expect more resilience on their own patch with Swansea defeated in six of their last twelve games at home.

Millwall recorded one of their most memorable results of last season away at Swansea when they came from 2-0 down in stoppage time to draw 2-2 thanks to own goals from Harry Darling and Nathan Wood. Michael Obafemi, now on loan at the Lions, scored against Millwall that day.

But the Swans got their own back earlier this season when they ran out 3-0 winners at The Den.

Millwall have won just one of their last eight games against Swansea.

Joe Bryan and Murray Wallace will both be missing due to injury while Harris revealed yesterday that departing goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski will play no part in the game.

Michael Obafemi could face his former club tomorrow. Image: Millwall FCMichael Obafemi could face his former club tomorrow. Image: Millwall FC - Stat Station - Regardless of the result against Swansea tomorrow, Millwall will finish with their lowest league position in five years since ending up fourth-bottom in the 2018-19 season. The Lions are targeting a fifth consecutive Championship win for the first time since March 2022 when they beat when they beat Cardiff City, Queens Park Rangers, Derby County, Sheffield United and Reading. Having gone 60 games with a goal, Jake Cooper has now registered in back-to-back home games after netting against both Cardiff and Plymouth. His late goal Millwall have ended the season without a single 0-0 draw at The Den. The only season that comes close to this is the 2019-20 campaign which only witnessed a single 0-0 in SE16. In fact, the Lions have so far only drawn two games 0-0 this season (away at West Brom and Stoke City), their lowest rate of goalless matches since the 2013-14 league campaign (three 0-0s). 41 per cent of the points Millwall have won so far this season have come under Neil Harris. But the Millwall head coach does not have a good record against Swansea and has drawn one and lost three of his four matches against them as a manager. Harris has stopped his side from conceding from open play in all of the six home games he has overseen. In the last seven games he has managed home or away, Millwall have also only conceded one goal in the first half. Six players are currently drawn as the top scorer under Harris so far with two goals: Cooper, Zian Flemming, Michael Obafemi, Japhet Tanganga, Ryan Longman and Duncan Watmore. If Flemming does not score at least twice against Swansea, it will mark the first time since no Millwall player has reached double figures since the 2014-15 season. Obafemi enjoyed by far the best goal-scoring season of his career at Swansea in the 2021-22 campaign when he netted 12 goals in 32 appearances. He made 52 appearances overall for the Welsh club. Elsewhere... It is set to be a fascinating day at the top and bottom of the Championship.

Injury List (2) Murray Wallace - back - last match: vs Rotherham - April 1 - Out for the rest of the seasonJoe Bryan - groin - last match: vs West Brom - March 29 - Out for the rest of the season

Suspension Watch - players with two or more yellows so far (15 yellow cards accumulated before the end of the regular season will result in a three game suspension).

George Saville - 11 (booked against Stoke, Watford, Sheffield Wednesday (x2), Coventry, Sunderland and Leicester (x2), Ipswich, Huddersfield and Cardiff).Jake Cooper - 9 (booked against Middlesbrough, Swansea, Plymouth, Sheffield Wednesday, Sunderland, Leicester, Stoke, Norwich and Leeds)Ryan Leonard - 9 (booked against Plymouth, Cardiff, Norwich, Bristol City, Ipswich, Watford, Birmingham, Leeds and Huddersfield)George Honeyman - 9 (booked against Ipswich, QPR, Norwich, Middlesbrough, Preston, Sheffield Wednesday, Southampton, Leeds and Leicester)Zian Flemming - 7 (booked against Watford (x2), Ipswich, QPR, Preston, Leeds and Sunderland)Murray Wallace - 6 (booked against Plymouth, Southampton, Coventry, Leicester, QPR and Hull)Danny McNamara - 6 (booked against West Brom, Plymouth, Hull, Ipswich, Watford and Huddersfield)Joe Bryan - 5 (booked against Middlesbrough (x2), Hull, Birmingham and West Brom)Ryan Longman - 5 (booked against Rotherham, Swansea, Southampton, Middlesbrough and Cardiff)Wes Harding - 4 (booked against Birmingham, Hull, Leicester and Stoke)Brooke Norton-Cuffy - 4 (booked against Birmingham, Plymouth, Watford and Bristol City)Billy Mitchell - 4 (booked against Norwich, Stoke, QPR and Huddersfield)Casper De Norre - 3 (booked against Hull (x2) and Ipswich)Japhet Tanganga - 3 (booked against Sheffield Wednesday, Southampton and Blackburn)Duncan Watmore - 3 (booked against Sunderland, Norwich and Cardiff)Shaun Hutchinson - 2 (booked against Bristol City and Cardiff)Aidomo Emakhu - 2 (booked against Preston and QPR)Matija Sarkic - 2 (booked against Southampton and Leicester)