MILLWALL boss Gary Rowett felt Crystal Palace showed his side the benefits of being patient in defence as the Eagles won 1-0 at The Den in a friendly on Tuesday.
Max Meyer scored the only goal after Wilfried Zaha had beaten Alex Pearce to cross low into the box.
Bart Bialkowski saved Jeffrey Schlupp’s shot early in the second half, while Palace goalkeeper Vicente Guaita kept out Scott Malone’s volley.
That was Millwall’s best opportunity as they struggled to break through against Roy Hodgson’s side.
“We spoke about ramping up the challenge in pre-season, it’s about testing yourselves so you feel like you’re ready for different types of games when the season starts,” Rowett said.
“It would be very easy to play teams below you in the leagues and maybe win them and feel comfortable and score goals. But ultimately you have to test yourself off the ball in some of those defensive moments.
“Palace have lots of pace and athleticism and strength, but I thought we pressed them at times in good areas. Sometimes they’re going to get out of those positions because they’ve got the players to do that, whereas in the Championship it would be harder for teams to get out.
“I was pleased with a lot of it. The goal is probably a good lesson against a Premier League side. We end up in a good position on the edge of their box and should make more of it. We give it away and then get punished with one ball and then it’s a goal.
“Against good teams that have that sort of quality and pace, you can’t afford to make those mistakes. I’m pleased with three-quarters of it and the quarter I wasn’t pleased with was probably that little bit more quality in the final third to maintain pressure on the opposition and create more opportunities.
“I don’t think Palace created that many opportunities against us. There were probably an equal amount of moments and they made the most of one of them.”
Zaha was a constant threat to Millwall, showing the class that has seen him linked with the likes of Arsenal and Everton.
Rowett added: “You’re talking about a player that, if I’m right in thinking, they’ve had £50million-plus bids for in the past. It’s different to our division where you have good players but they’re probably not going to make that much difference to the game.
“Palace have got the likes of Zaha, [Jordan] Ayew, Schlupp who can just go past someone to break a tight game open.
“But I thought we coped with that on the whole really well. We moved the ball really well first half, got into some good areas but lacked a little bit at the end of it. When we moved the ball slowly they got such a good defensive shape.
“It was a good lesson because it’s something we try to do with our players, you almost have to be patient out of possession. Be happy, be comfortable out of possession and not be too worried about it. They make it so difficult to play through them. They’re very good at it.
“I thought it was a really, really good workout.”
Image: Millwall FC