NewsAtDen looks at all 23 of Millwall’s Championship opponents ahead of the new season.
Next up, Lucas Ball casts an eye over Norwich City.
Nickname: The Canaries
Manager: Daniel Farke
Stadium: Carrow Road (27,220)
Club website: www.canaries.co.uk
Nearest train station: Norwich
Postcode: NR1 1HS
Title odds (Sky Bet): 10/1
Last meeting: Championship – Millwall 1-4 Norwich City (March 7, 2015)
Last season:
Position: 8th in Sky Bet Championship
Goals for: 85
Goals against: 69
Top league scorer: Cameron Jerome (16)
2017-18 transfers:
Ins: Marcel Franke (£2.55mil); James Husband (£961k); Mario Vrancic (£638k); Christoph Zimmermann (free); Marley Watkins (free); Harrison Reed (loan); Angus Gunn (loan)
Outs: Jacob Murphy (£9.61mil); Jonny Howson (£4.8mil); Declan Rudd (£966k); Steven Whittaker (free); Kyle Lafferty (free); Conor McGrandles free); Ryan Bennett (free); Michael Turner (free); John Ruddy (free); Graham Dorrans (undisclosed); Sebastian Bassong (released); Youssouf Malumbu (released)
New Norwich manager Daniel Farke wasted no time putting his own mark on the Norwich City squad after a disappointing campaign last season when they finished eighth.
Farke is another new manager – like Hull’s Leon Slutsky and Thomas Christiansen at Leeds United – with no experience of coaching in English football. The man responsible for the appointment of David Wagner at Huddrsfield, however, and now director of football at the Canaries, Stuart Webber, hopes he has uncovered another talent in Farke, who arrived this summer from two years in charge of Borussia Dortmund’s reserve side.
Farke has already spent some cash and will have more to spend after winger Jacob Murphy left for Newcastle in a multi-million pound deal. Farke has so far strengthened in multiple positions across the pitch as he looks to mount a title challenge or at least a tilt at promotion with his new side.
Farke will have to restore confidence at the club. They may have been one of the highest scoring teams in the league last season and in the first third of it were keeping pace with Newcastle and Brighton, but they collapsed suddenly after that promising form and Alex Neil ended up paying with his job.
Farke has acted quickly to remove a lot of deadwood from the squad, as well as big earners such as Michael Turner, Sebastian Bassong and former West Brom midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu. One-cap England international goalkeeper John Ruddy also turned down a new contract offer at Carrow Road and joined Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Young midfielder Harrison Reed will add a lot of energy and hard work to the midfield, hoping to prove to the new Southampton manager Mauricio Pellegrino that he is worthy of a spot in the Saints’ first team in the next couple of years. Cameron Jerome has been linked with a move away, but Farke will do everything in his power to keep hold of their top goal scorer from 2016-17.
Millwall vs. Norwich (Saturday, August 26, 2017)
Norwich vs. Millwall (Monday, January 1, 2018)
Graphic: @ShedCreative