SATURDAY’S clash with Coventry is a chance for Millwall to measure their progress after they were “outclassed” by the same opposition earlier this season, according to manager Neil Harris.
The Lions lost 4-0 to Coventry in August (above), the second of four defeats in a row at The Den that demonstrated the size of the task to recover from relegation.
Millwall were 11 points behind Coventry as recently as January 12, but a run of just two wins in 15 for Tony Mowbray’s side has seen them plummet down the table.
Over the same period, Millwall have lost just two league fixtures in 16 and are currently 12 points ahead of the Sky Blues.
But Harris still believes his players have “a point to prove” this weekend after August’s chastening experience.
“It hurt at the time and it was probably the biggest learning curve of the season,” Harris said. “They were much better than us on the day, we performed really poorly and mentally we were really weak.
“I think it highlighted if any of us were naïve in thinking it was going to be a quick fix, that day really showed us it was going to be a long-term plan.
“It’s been a long time coming for us, it’s an opportunity to try and put it right. It’s an opportunity to judge ourselves against a very good Coventry side that outclassed us on the day. It’ll show us how far we’ve come as a group.
“I’m looking forward to seeing the challenge my players face, how we deal with it and what we have learned over the course of the last eight months.
“I want to see the mentality of the group – they’ve got a point to prove.”