Millwall take on Hull City at the Den in the second leg of their Championship playoff semifinal on Monday, as the pair chase a spot at Wembley and a shot at promotion to the Premier League.
It is all square in the tie after the first leg finished goalless at the MKM Stadium in Hull, although not without its share of controversy. Ryan Leonard's late strike was ruled out for a foul in the build-up, which was termed "harsh" by Millwall boss Alex Neil.
Sergej Jakirovic's Hull City side, meanwhile, will be aiming to repeat their 3-1 win at the Den earlier this season, which would take them through to Wembley -- although they looked far from their best in the first leg.
Here's everything you need to know about Monday's game.
How to watch:
The match will be shown on Sky Sports Football in the UK, CBS / Paramount+ in the U.S., FanCode in India and beIN Sports in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details:
Kick-off time: Monday, May 11 at 8 p.m. GMT (3 p.m. ET; 12:30 a.m. IST, Tuesday and 5 a.m. AEST, Tuesday).
Venue: The Den, London
Referee: Sam Barrott
Injury and Team News:
Millwall
Caleb Taylor, D: discomfort, DOUBT
Joe Bryan, D: muscle, DOUBT
Daniel Kelly, M: hamstring, DOUBT
Benicio Baker-Boaitey, M: groin, OUT
Massimo Luongo, M: ACL, OUT
Lukas Jensen, GK: achilles, OUT
Hull City
Amir Hadziahmetovic, M: muscle, OUT
Eliot Matazo, M: ACL, OUT
Cody Drameh, D: muscle, OUT
Talking Points:
Advantage Millwall going into the second leg
Alex Neil was at pains to point out that his Millwall side were the better team in the first leg, and the possession stats certainly bore that out -- the visitors had 62% of the ball at the MKM stadium. However, they managed to generate only 0.61 xG from all that possession, which came from 15 shots, pointing to very poor chances created despite having 24 touches in the box.
Millwall were statistically the better side in the first leg, but a fair bit of it was sterile dominance. Neil's side were only too happy to play it safe, which might not work out at the Den. Nonetheless, taking a 0-0 draw to a home ground, with Wembley on the line is a scenario that Millwall would have happily accepted at the start of the season.
Neil's attackers were a bit muted in the first leg however, and the likes of Femi Azeez will have to produce far more if Millwall are to make it to Wembley.
Hull can count on their attackers to take them through
The bookmakers fancied Hull the least going into the playoffs, but they would have quickly revised their opinion after Sergej Jakirovic's start in the first leg. Mohamed Belloumi's mazy run into the box and subsequent shot set the tone, as Hull had the better half-chances in the first half.
Oli McBurnie, Joe Gelhardt and Belloumi went close multiple times, and looked particularly threatening in transitions. With the onus on Millwall to attack, there will be more spaces to exploit at the Den and their forwards will thrive in the gaps afforded to them.
The likes of McBurnie have the experience of playoff success and that could propel them to Wembley.
What do the numbers say?
Millwall have lost their last two games at home against Hull, conceding four goals and scoring once.
Hull have a 100% record of promotion from the Championship playoffs, (2/2) with West Ham United the only other team to do so.
Oliver McBurnie is two goals shy of becoming the first Hull player to score 20 goals in a season since 2021.
Femi Azeez (5G, 6A) is one of only two players in the Championship to have both scored and assisted five or more goals.
Hull have lost just one of their last five home games against Milwall (in March this season).