JOE Edwards faces his biggest test as Millwall head coach so far as he takes his team east to face relentless Ipswich Town.
The Tractor Boys have made the best start of any promoted Championship side in recent memory, outgunning all around them with dazzling, effective, fast-paced football.
A 3-4 home defeat to Leeds United had been the sole blemish on their record before Saturday’s evening’s limp 2-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion, where Ipswich failed to score in a game for the first time this season.
But that temporary setback will not tame their ambitions of back-to-back promotions and may leave Kieran McKenna’s side even more hungry to feast upon a vulnerable Millwall side who struggled in defeat to Coventry City.
Anything but a loss for the Lions would constitute a surprise result, especially after that defeat to the Sky Blues exposed some defensive issues that Millwall have been trying to cover all season.
But, despite their seven point advantage over third-place Leeds United, Ipswich are a side that can be got at and the unsustainable rate in which they concede goals also offers some encouragement for travelling fans.
They have 19 more points than Millwall but have conceded one goal more so far in this campaign.
Edwards and McKenna know each other well and both represent a new generation of young coaches unafraid to stamp their identity and ideas all over their teams.
While Millwall’s head coach is at the very beginning of his journey at The Den, McKenna has been at Portman Road for almost two years now and is doing a frankly stunning job.
After scoring 101 goals in 46 games on the way to League One promotion last season, the Northern Irishman’s side have taken the Championship by storm too and they head into this set of fixtures just three points behind leaders Leicester City.
Goals come from all parts of their team and they can simply cut through sides at will when they’re in the groove. With the exception of in-form West Brom, no team has seemed able to completely repel their attacking football which is a major problem for a Millwall side who tend to concede a hatful of chances, win lose or draw.
Chance creation was also a big issue against Coventry even if the Lions appeared far more comfortable on the ball during large spells of the game.
They had Bartosz Bialkowski to thank at the other end for a series of saves that stopped the deficit from growing larger.
The Polish goalkeeper could have plenty to do again to keep out Ipswich’s hotshots. Matija Sarkic will hope to return to the matchday squad after not making it on Saturday while Danny McNamara’s minor knee issue will keep him out again.
Conor Chaplin and Nathan Broadhead both have six goals each so far for Ipswich while George Hirst, Marcus Harness, Jack Taylor and Freddie Ladapo all have four.
Millwall’s last game against Ipswich saw the Lions pull off a 3-2 win at Portman Road on New Year’s Day, 2019.
Three goals in 16 second half minutes from Shane Ferguson, Jake Cooper and Tom Elliott secured the victory.
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Stat Station
- The last five games between these two teams has produced 23 goals.
- Ipswich have scored more than triple the amount of goals at Portman Road (25) than Millwall have scored at The Den (seven).
- Despite being top of the Championship’s home league table, Ipswich have conceded the joint-most goals in front of their own fans (15) as any other side in the division alongside Millwall and Preston North End.
- Of Millwall’s five victories this season, three have come from teams currently beneath them in the table (Millwall sit 18th heading into Tuesday night’s games). Millwall have played 14 of the 17 teams currently above them in the table but have only won two of those (Middlesborough and Stoke City).
- Ipswich’s lowest league position all season is sixth.
- Millwall have the joint-fewest away defeats in the league alongside Leicester City and Ipswich (one). They also have the second-best defence away from home, conceding just seven goals after Leicester’s six.
- The Lions haven’t lost away from home in well over three months, a run of six games. This is their longest streak unbeaten away from home since they went seven without defeat in April 2018, with the seventh game being coincidentally a 2-2 draw away at Ipswich. Cooper and George Saville scored that day.
- Speaking of Cooper and Saville, both men will need to watch their step at Portman Road as they are both one booking away from suspension. Saville picked up his fourth yellow against Coventry on Saturday.
- Defender Cooper also boasts an impressive two goals and two assists in six games against the Tractor Boys.
- Ipswich’s last seven home games have produced scorelines of (in this order): 3-4, 3-2, 4-3, 3-0, 4-2, 3-2, 3-2. Conor Chaplin has scored in three of Ipswich’s last four games at Portman Road.
- Kieran McKenna’s side have conceded in the opening 15 minutes in each of their last five games.
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Injury List
Joe Bryan – groin – last match: vs Blackburn Rovers 24th October
Danny McNamara – knee – last match: vs Southampton 4th November
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Suspension Watch – players with two or more yellows so far (five yellow cards accumulated in the first 19 games result in a one game suspension)
Jake Cooper – 4 (booked against Middlesbrough, Swansea City, Plymouth and Sheffield Wednesday)
George Saville – 4 (booked against Stoke City, Watford, Sheffield Wednesday and Coventry)
Danny McNamara – 3 (booked against West Bromwich Albion, Plymouth and Hull City)
Brooke Norton-Cuffy – 3 (booked against Birmingham City, Plymouth and Watford)
Murray Wallace – 3 (booked against Plymouth, Southampton and Coventry)
Ryan Longman – 3 (booked against Rotherham United, Swansea and Southampton)
Wes Harding – 2 (booked against Birmingham City and Hull)
Shaun Hutchinson – 2 (booked against Middlesbrough and Bristol City)