MILLWALL are looking to seal their third consecutive win on the road as they travel to the Coventry Building Society Arena to face Coventry City.
The Lions beat Cardiff City 1-0 in the Welsh capital at the end of January before winning 2-1 against QPR on Saturday afternoon, securing victory at Loftus Road for the first time since 1989. In between those two matches, they played out a 0-0 draw with play-off rivals Sunderland, extending their unbeaten run to three games.
The two away wins have been crucial for manager Gary Rowett, whose side really struggled on the road earlier this season. They took until October 15th to secure all three points on their travels for the first time this season, with their last win on the road before then coming all the way back at the start of March.
It shows a clear improvement, which will be crucial in the long-term as Millwall look to secure a play-off spot, and in the short-term as they prepare to face Coventry City this evening.
The match will see the two longest-serving managers in the entire division squaring off, with Mark Robins having taken charge of the Sky Blues in March 2017 while Rowett recently celebrated his third anniversary at The Den. Both will be targeting a top six finish this season, but with the strength of the teams at the top end of the division, it seems likely that only one will make it.
Coventry had a nightmarish start to the season when a number of their games had to be postponed due to the condition of their pitch from the Commonwealth Games, meaning that they went weeks at a time without a match in August. Their clash against Millwall at The Den was impacted as a result, with Robins blaming his side’s lack of match fitness as a significant reason for his side’s 3-2 defeat.
Their results haven’t really improved since aside from an exciting run seven wins in nine games shortly before the World Cup break. Since then, they have won just two matches, dropping down to 14th in the table as a result.
It doesn’t mean it will be an easy match for Millwall, however. Coventry have one of the best strikers in the Championship in Viktor Gyokeres, who has already scored 12 goals and provided a further four assists in 30 games so far this season. He is rivalling Zian Flemming for the Golden Boot in the second tier, with the Dutchman on 10 goals for the season, although he has failed to find the back of the net since Boxing Day.
The Lions will be without captain Shaun Hutchinson [groin] for tonight’s match, while Tyler Burey [hip], Mason Bennett [ankle], Aidomo Emakhu [quad] and Callum Styles [calf] are all sidelines as well.
Possible Millwall XI: Long; McNamara, Cresswell, Cooper, Wallace; Mitchell, Saville; Honeyman, Flemming, Watmore; Bradshaw
Match odds: Coventry 29/20 Draw 11/5 Millwall 15/8
Last meeting: Championship (August 13th, 2022): Millwall 3-2 Coventry (McFadzean 2′, Godden 28′; Cooper 36′, Honeyman 53′, Saville 85′)
Photo: Millwall FC