Millwall Analysis: How Lions attack &#8211; and Wrexham template for breaching Baggies&#8217; defence

By Tom Appleby

MILLWALL go into the final five games of the season in fourth place in the Championship ahead of their trip to face West Bromwich Albion at The Hawthorns on Friday night.

They are on 72 points, the same as Middlesbrough in third and Ipswich Town in second, though the Tractor Boys have two games in hand.

Still, Alex Neil’s Lions can put pressure on their automatic promotion rivals with a win against an improved Baggies.

Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich travel to Carrow Road to face a resurgent Norwich City in the East Anglian derby on Saturday, while Kim Hellberg’s Boro host relegation-threatened Portsmouth.

Millwall are unlikely to face one of the best attackers they have had in the last decade. Jed Wallace, who joined West Brom on a free transfer in the summer of 2022 after 38 goals in 211 league games for the Lions, has been struggling with a calf injury and hasn’t yet played this month.

Wallace’s heir on the right wing, Femi Azeez, has taken on the attacking responsibility this season with relish. He has sixteen attacking returns in 30 Championship games (eight goals, eight assists).

Millwall have scored in sixteen of their last seventeen league games, their last blank coming in their 0-0 draw against Southampton at St Mary’s on New Year’s day.

Here, we look at how the Lions create goal opportunities.

Millwall shun central midfield by creating chances through quick transitions

Millwall’s fast transitional wing-play has been the main source of their goals this season, bypassing central midfield to create attacking opportunities.

Azeez on the right and Alfie Doughty, when he has played, on the left have been adept at making chances for Millwall’s front-men.

Azeez, often touted as Millwall’s most dangerous player, has created 56 chances, the most in the team.

The winger also leads the squad rankings for most assists, having set up eight goals this season.

Tristan Crama and Doughty’s marauding forward runs have been a threat, sending dangerous crosses into the box for Josh Coburn and Mihailo Ivanovic.

Crama, in particular, is positive in the way he progressively moves the ball forward.

The defender has the second-highest number of assists in the team (six) and has created 32 chances (more than midfielder Casper De Norre and striker/attacking midfielder Macaulay Langstaff put together).

Doughty has set up five goals, and his assist-per-game ratio is one in three compared to Crama’s one in seven.

To maximise their threat on the wing, Millwall have rejected possession-based football by targeting the opposition with direct, risky passes.

The Lions are second-last in the league for the number of passes per sequence of play (2.49), with only relegation-threatened Oxford United recording fewer.

Meanwhile, they rank first in passes sent forward (43.8 per cent) and joint-third for fewest backwards passes (14.8 per cent).

It is arguable, however, that the fast, transitional style of play has its drawbacks, as the team has sacrificed its threat from midfield.

No central midfielder has recorded five or more assists. De Norre has four, and Billy Mitchell has one, the same as Langstaff.

Camiel Neghli is perhaps the exception to the dearth of creativity from midfield. He has created 33 chances, though even he has only set up three goals.

Set-piece dominance

The Lions also create goal-scoring opportunities through their aerial dominance from set-pieces.

Crama, Caleb Taylor and Jake Cooper’s ability to win headed duels has frequently led to dangerous openings for Millwall’s attacking players.

This was perhaps best exemplified in the 1-0 win against Derby County at The Den on March 10.

Barry Bannan floated in a free-kick from the right-hand side, Crama won the second ball and hooked it to the back post, and Coburn rose high to head the ball into the corner.

Josh Coburn with the award. Image: Sky Bet.

Over all, Millwall have scored 22 goals from set-pieces, the third-highest in the league behind Coventry City and Southampton.

They have completed the highest number of successful crosses (148) and have made the second highest number of headers (122) behind league-leaders Coventry.

It could be said that the Lions’ tactical approach is more old-fashioned than their possession-based rivals.

But football is a results business, and Millwall’s results so far have put them into a strong position in the Premier League promotion battle.

Wrexham offer template

They can further strengthen their chances against West Brom. The Baggies are much-improved under James Morrison, their former midfielder, who was appointed interim boss after Eric Ramsay’s disastrous eight-game winless spell in charge.

West Brom did concede twice in their last home game, a 2-2 draw against Wrexham after the hosts had led 2-0 at the break.

West Brom have mostly played 4-4-2 under Morrison, and Wrexham’s first goal came from a direct ball forward that took out the opponents' midfield. Josh Windass gained possession before, after an exchange of passes, he scored from just outside the box.

The visitors’ equaliser arrived after they had won a second ball high up the pitch before a low cross into the box was flicked home by former Charlton Athletic midfielder George Dobson.

As mentioned, Millwall are strong on direct balls forward, and in Ivanovic and Coburn have the forwards to challenge for first contacts and bring team-mates into play to claim second balls. It is something they have to maximise on Friday night.