Following today’s clash between Birmingham City and Millwall, here are the instant reactions from both managers.
Birmingham City hosted Millwall at St Andrew’s Stadium for a 3pm kick off on Saturday February 17, with the visitors taking a one nil victory with a late goal from second half substitute Fred Onyedinma.
Birmingham had plenty of chances across the game but failed to register a shot on target until stoppage time at the end of the game, Millwall will focus on taking their third straight away win on the spin.
Teams:
Birmingham:
Stockdale, Jenkinson, Roberts, Dean, Colin, Lowe (Jota 45), Kieftenbeld, Maghoma (Jutkiewicz 81), Gardner, Boga (Adams 74), Gallagher.
Substitutes:
Bramall, Morrison, O’Keeffe, Trueman.
Millwall:
Archer, Romeo, Hutchinson, Cooper, Meredith (Onyedinma 66), Wallace, Saville, Williams, Marshall, Gregory (Shackell 90+3), Morison (Cahill 85).
Substitutes:
McLaughlin, Martin, Tunnicliffe, Elliott.
Speaking to the BBC’s cameras a short time after match day referee Darren England blew the final whistle, Birmingham manager Steve Cotterill explained.
‘We didn’t play with enough zip or enthusiasm and this is what disappointed me. We didn’t play badly, but we didn’t perform anywhere near the level we have previously achieved. We looked flat and the ground was quiet with no atmosphere. We need to go on another good run, but it has never been plain-sailing. Unfortunately it is going to be topsy-turvy for the rest of the season. It’s not nice to accept that, but we’ve been down at the bottom since day one. It is a difficult job but one I’ve got to do.’
Millwall manager Neil Harris in his comparative interview explained.
‘Onyedinma is up and down with his performances because he is young. But when he comes off the bench with 20 or 25 minutes to go that is the kind of impact I demand as a manager. I was a little critical of our first-half performance. The second half was much better with a really good goal and we could have had two of three more. It’s three wins in a row on the road, which isn’t bad for a team which couldn’t win away from home at the start of the season.’
