'I knew I'd be a better man for coming back' - Millwall boss Neil Harris on dream Den return

If immoderate Millwall instrumentality was ever asked to prime a manager to triumph a one-off crippled astatine The Den, Neil Harris would beryllium the overwhelming choice.

So it was lone logical that the nine turned to the antheral who has been coined 'Mr Millwall' erstwhile they were haunted by the menace of relegation towards the extremity of past season.

When it comes to nine royalty, Harris is close up determination - arsenic some a subordinate and a manager. You'd beryllium hard pressed to find a important infinitesimal oregon accomplishment successful Millwall's caller past that wasn't affiliated with him successful immoderate way.

Few tin transmission the chaos generated by the 15,000 radical wrong The Den each different weekend. But Harris can. So possibly it should travel arsenic nary astonishment that, successful the end, helium kept Millwall up astatine a canter past twelvemonth aft riding successful connected a achromatic horse. And listening to him talk a fewer months on, it feels astir silly to deliberation specified a feat was ever successful doubt.

"I deliberation that Southampton crippled - my archetypal crippled backmost - was close up determination arsenic 1 of my champion moments, successful a truly random way," Harris tells Mirror Football from his bureau astatine the club's Calmont Road grooming base.

"That's successful my apical 10 - if not apical 5 moments - arsenic a Millwall man. I've had immoderate superb days arsenic a subordinate and the manager - I've been truly fortunate successful that respect - but that time was truly special; the ambiance successful St Mary's was thing special.

"I walked disconnected and I knew past we were going to beryllium alright."

As the club's all-time grounds goalscorer, Harris had already secured his spot connected the pantheon of Millwall greats, agelong earlier helium was lured backmost to South London to execute a Houdini-esque rescue act.

Harris' erstwhile tenure included promotion to the Championship and a memorable ace astatine pursuing that up with a aureate summons to the Premier League the twelvemonth after.

He would resign (after immoderate statement with the Millwall board) successful October 2019. But a committedness to Millwall's precocious chairman, John Berylson, that helium would instrumentality successful the club's hr of need, ensured his destiny would proceed to beryllium entwined with that of the nine helium has go synonymous with implicit the past 20 years.

It says everything astir Harris' quality that helium has referenced connected grounds - connected much than 1 juncture - the enactment done by his predecessors during his fruitful 2nd spell.

Gary Rowett - who replaced Harris astatine the helm successful 2019 - helped stabilise the Lions successful the Championship. Joe Edwards' little tenure whitethorn not person yielded affirmative results but did beryllium their was a tendency astatine the nine for evolution. It was Harris, though, who acceptable the nine connected their existent trajectory with the enactment helium did archetypal clip around.

"In antithetic ways, they each showed america the mode forward; beryllium it the attributes to effort and germinate our worldly oregon more. I spot my occupation arsenic fig 4 connected that database [of managers] to proceed that pathway truthful that erstwhile fig 5 and six instrumentality over, we're successful a overmuch amended spot arsenic a shot club."

Progress connected the transportation has already been important crossed the nine-month spell Harris has overseen. Only Leeds (50) person accrued much than the 49 points Millwall person banked since Harris' return. He has won fractional of his 30 league games.

The phenomenal enactment undertaken by Harris has mostly gone unappreciated extracurricular the Millwall bubble. Much similar the club's infamous anthem, though, helium doesn't care.

"We've achieved a batch implicit the past 9 months, but I genuinely judge there's much to travel from us. My occupation is to effort and triumph games of football. You don't person to conscionable beryllium an ex-Millwall subordinate to beryllium capable to play a mode the Millwall fans place with, but you person to person an knowing of what that looks like.

"I judge we tin germinate arsenic well, into a amended mentation of ourselves. But that does instrumentality clip and it takes transportation windows."

Millwall are, successful galore ways, an antithesis to the mean Championship team. There's nary accidental of a Neil Harris squad ever racking up possession numbers for the involvement of it, but misconceptions implicit the club's benignant of play are lazy. They person evolved since Harris' archetypal tenure and their stats successful the cardinal attacking metrics fertile among the highest successful the division.

A person who watched the caller 1-0 triumph implicit promotion favourites Burnley, remarked that helium had 'never seen a squad predominate without the shot similar this'.

"Do I get capable credit? Do we get capable recognition arsenic a shot club? We don't play the sexiest benignant of football, I recognize that. But my occupation arsenic a Millwall manager is not driven by possession stats. It's astir getting results.

"My players play with truthful overmuch subject and desire. Their operation and organisation...they instrumentality connected truthful overmuch accusation [and transportation it out] that if it was done by a overseas team, overseas coach, I'm definite they'd get a batch much credit.

"I did thing I've ne'er done earlier aft the Leeds crippled astatine The Den. I stood connected the transportation by the passageway and I applauded my players off, due to the fact that they'd bushed Leeds astatine location disconnected the backmost of the Burnley triumph successful the abstraction of 72 hours. I was successful awe of my players."

The bully times whitethorn beryllium rolling but recognition is simply a currency fewer managers tin slope connected for long, careless of status. Harris is nary different. As a staunch England fan, who has travelled to ticker his state regularly, Gareth Southgate's concern resonates with him.

Despite his good grounds astatine large tournaments, the erstwhile England manager was chastised pursuing a subpar commencement to the European Championship finals successful the summer.

"Gareth is simply a genius. We don't commencement good astatine the Euros, truthful the fans accidental sack him halfway done the tournament. We suffer a period aboriginal [in the last earlier leaving] and it's all, 'Didn't helium bash good for us, however brilliant'. I conscionable look astatine that and deliberation that is the beingness of a shot manager. And bash you cognize what, I'm truthful astatine bid with it now."

Harris felt the nine needed realigning erstwhile helium returned successful February, and has spent the past 9 months rebuilding that transportation betwixt the terraces and the pitch.

He points retired that the past importantly disappointing effect Millwall endured, was past season's demoralising nonaccomplishment astatine Huddersfield, who yet succumbed to the drop.

As 2024 draws to a close, Millwall are the signifier squad successful the division, amid a seven-match unbeaten run. Promotion favourites Burnley and Leeds person already been slain astatine The Den this period to enactment the remainder of the part connected notice.

"I'm conscionable pleased for the shot club. I'm pleased that maine and my unit are doing our jobs. I'm genuinely pleased for the punters that wage their wealth to travel and ticker their squad and really bask watching them.

"I deliberation it's a large presumption for a Millwall instrumentality to beryllium successful astatine the moment; to bask watching their team, but besides cognize erstwhile they crook up connected a Saturday day precisely what they're going to get."

Harris ranks the existent civilization arsenic 1 of the champion he's seen successful each his years astatine the club, beryllium that arsenic a subordinate oregon manager.

It's casual to gully comparisons betwixt this run and the 2017-18 season, wherever Millwall came truthful adjacent to breaking their Premier League duck, aft a 17-game unbeaten tally enactment them connected the cusp of a play-off place.

It would person lone felt excessively close for Harris, with his affiliation with the club, to instrumentality them to the promised onshore for the archetypal clip backmost then. Nothing has changed connected that front.

Naturally, fixed the occurrence of the past 9 months, thoughts crook to what's next. He is halfway done the 18-month declaration helium signed earlier this twelvemonth and it remains to beryllium seen what the aboriginal holds.

He was unsure helium would ever instrumentality to absorption earlier the radical and task astatine Cambridge helped him rediscover his spark for the game. Millwall, though, person undoubtedly been the main beneficiaries.

"I'm precise arrogant of the occupation I've done and the information I got it close successful deciding to travel backmost successful February, for the close reasons arsenic well. When I near primitively it was the close time: I had to spell distant and bash a batch of learning, I had to spell distant and make arsenic a manager and arsenic a idiosyncratic distant from Millwall."

Harris speaks of "starting" a process for James Berylson, who is seeking to instrumentality the nine guardant with a caller exemplary centred connected investing and processing successful youth.

Whatever the aboriginal holds, Harris' fable has lone grown. And if the fairytale ending, that eluded him backmost successful 2018, comes to fruition this clip around, helium would surely elevate himself supra each others successful the Millwall stratosphere.

"I knew coming backmost erstwhile I was offered with the occupation successful February - connected the backmost of a sleepless nighttime - I knew I'd beryllium a amended antheral for coming backmost and that I'd beryllium amended astatine my occupation the 2nd time. Proving it to the doubters is different.

"I'd similar to deliberation I've shown that."

Join our caller WhatsApp communityand person your regular dose of Mirror Football content. We besides dainty our assemblage members to peculiar offers, promotions, and adverts from america and our partners. If you don't similar our community, you tin cheque retired immoderate clip you like. If you're curious, you tin work our Privacy Notice.