Gary Rowett feels Millwall’s energy levels key in snatching win over West Brom

Posted Sunday, October 23, 2022 by PA

Millwall manager Gary Rowett believes the energy levels his team showed throughout the game against West Brom are what allowed them to snatch a 2-1 win in the closing stages.

Rowett insists he is not looking at the Sky Bet Championship table following the Lions’ fourth win in a row, which lifted them up to fifth after they came from behind against the struggling Baggies.

They were given the lift of Kyle Bartley’s red card in the 85th minute, but as well as looking energised they showed composure in wearing their visitors down before Tyler Burey found a winner as the clock ticked towards 90 minutes.

It was, however, a cruel end for Richard Beale in what is likely to be his last match in caretaker charge of West Brom after his players had fought so hard to preserve a point at The Den.

Rowett said: “I thought we got better as the game went on.

“You could argue we should have been ahead before the second goal – it’s a close offside call [against Burey] and I felt we had some really good moments where we maybe should do a little better with that last action in front of goal.

“I would have been disappointed if we didn’t win the game, but I’d have been proud if we had have drawn the game because of the resilience it shows for us to perform in that way, with the same energy.

“Sometimes you come out of those game and you win and sometimes you don’t, but remember we were a goal down.

“I spoke about the first goal being so important and that’s twice now we’ve responded brilliantly at home and come back from a goal down to win the game.”

West Brom went ahead after 20 minutes when Millwall old boy Jed Wallace got away down the right and pulled the ball back for John Swift, whose effort was deflected in.

Lions goalkeeper George Long then had to make a crucial save from Wallace before Callum Styles drew the hosts level with his first goal for the club by driving into the roof of the net after the Baggies had failed to clear a free-kick.

Tom Bradshaw had a wonderful chance to put Millwall ahead just before the hour mark but scuffed Zian Flemming’s cross wide, but the pressure was building, leading to Bartley receiving a second yellow for pulling back Benik Afobe.

With time running out, Mason Bennett moved the ball left to fellow sub Burey, whose shot snuck in at the near post, with West Brom goalkeeper Alex Palmer seeming to misjudge where he was going to strike it.

Beale said: “A real sickener, I thought the boys battled very, very well, showed a lot of heart and character which is what we ask for.

“We showed energy, we obviously made a number of changes to inject that energy into the team, and on top of that I thought we were better with the ball, second half especially, today and created a few chances.

“We didn’t do it enough in the first half, but when we did we got in behind them and the goal comes from that cut-back finish which we’d done a bit of work on.

“But ultimately not good enough because we lose that game and the disappointing nature of the goals.”