Millwall vs West Ham United was always likely to be a dramatic affair, both on and off the pitch. A rivalry became reignited in London, but nothing could separate the two sides.
That said, it’s Alex Neil who will be the most frustrated man after waiting 14 years for this fixtures to arrive. The Millwall boss saw his side roar into a 2-0 lead in the first-half – both from long throws.
The first arrived from Caleb Taylor, who bundled home within just 16 minutes. It was a sign of things to come for the Hammers, who were quickly shell-shocked.
Nuno Espirito Santo would have been desperate to get into half-time. Millwall had other ideas, however. This time, it was Camiel Neghli who scrambled an effort beyond Mads Hermansen just before the break – handing the hosts what they thought was a commanding lead.
The writing looked on the wall at that stage, but derbies are rarely that simple. Mohamadou Kanté’s long-range effort from the bench flipped the game on it’s head. Millwall were suddenly pinned back. The Lions suddenly facing the inevitable, which arrived courtesy of Konstantinos Mavropanos.
And, of course, it wouldn’t be Millwall vs West Ham without a red card. Fresh from his goalscoring heroics, Kante stole the headlines one last time, receiving his marching orders.
The drama threatened to boil over one last time, only for Paul Tierney to signal the end of an affair which certainly lived up to expectations.
Nuno told West Ham star is a “big problem”
2-0 down at the break, BBC pundit and former Manchester United defender Paul Parker didn’t hold back, criticising Max Kilman and telling Nuno that he’s got a “big problem” on his hands.
The central defender received plenty of criticism last season and that has continued into the current campaign, as he takes to the Championship. After another disappointing display, it’s hard to argue against those critics, either.
|
Max Kilman vs Millwall |
|
|---|---|
|
Minutes |
90 |
|
Tackles |
1 |
|
Duel success |
3/11 |
|
Recoveries |
6 |
Taking aim at Kilman, Parker said: “Every time Kilman is one-on-one, he is really struggling, it’s a big problem.”
West Ham will be relieved to have rescued a point, but will be well aware how much needs to improve if they are to achieve eventual promotion back to the Premier League.
