Millwall manager Neil Harris has admitted that Barnsley were one of the sides that caught his attention in the Championship last season.
Hosting Paul Heckingbottom’s side at The Den this weekend for the latest Championship action, Harris was speaking to London News Online as he held his pre game press conference, and he was expecting a tough clash against a side who impressed him last year.
‘Barnsley had a fantastic season last time around – they were real surprise packages in how well they did. Paul Heckingbottom got all the plaudits because they did it on a smaller budget. Barnsley and Burton were two that caught the eye of all of us in the game.’
Harris went on to say of his opposite number.
‘Paul has done a fantastic job. He has brought in young players and they are a big side who are excellent on the counter-attack. They are also very dangerous from set-plays. We have to put in a repeat performance of Tuesday night and also of the Leeds and Norwich matches. We learned a lesson against Ipswich where we dominated but let four goals in. We`ve got to make sure we are as diligent in the 96th minute of a match as we are in the opening 10 minutes.’
He added.
‘It was a big result against Reading, going behind after 15 minutes and coming back to win. There is a huge amount of belief and confidence in the group but there certainly won`t be arrogance from us at The Den – far from it. Any team is capable of beating us and we have to make sure our focus is right.’
Harris can welcome back striker Lee Gregory for the game following his three game ban following the Queens Park Rangers game, but it’s expected Millwall will be without Tom Elliott.
‘It is a huge boost to have Lee back in the squad. If you`d said to me we would have seven points with two of our four strikers out then I`d have snapped your hand off. Lee is a big player for us. Having him back in the group and the squad will give everyone a lift. It has certainly given me some decisions in picking a team.’
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