Friday 6 April 2018 15:42, UK
Cardiff and Millwall are the Championship's surprise packages. Ahead of crucial fixtures for both teams, Peter Smith looks at how they are succeeding with a different style to their promotion rivals….
Victory over Championship leaders Wolves on Friday night will move Cardiff to within three points of top spot with a game in hand. A home win for Millwall against Bristol City on Saturday could lift the London side into the play-off places.
Nobody was predicting this situation last summer.
Neil Warnock inspired an impressive turnaround at Cardiff in 2016/17, taking over with the club languishing in 23rd place and steering them to the safety of 12th. But when the pre-season odds were drawn up 14 teams were given a better chance of promotion.
Even less was expected of Millwall. The newly-promoted side, who needed a last-gasp winner to grab the final League One play-off spot and then another late strike to earn victory at Wembley, were third favourites for relegation.
Yet here we are, with only a month of the Championship season remaining and both clubs' supporters dreaming of Premier League football.
They have crashed the promotion-race party, mixing with a Wolves side which has attracted talent from some of Europe's biggest clubs, with Middlesbrough in the play-off places looking for an immediate return to the Premier League alongside Aston Villa, Fulham and Derby.
What's more, they are doing it their own way. Cardiff and Millwall's direct styles are distinctly different from the teams around them.
Possession dominant Fulham have racked up 21,496 passes this season. Wolves are not far behind on 19,667. Cardiff and Millwall are around 10,000 passes behind them, with possession stats which put them among the bottom four in the division, along with relegation-threatened Burton and Bolton.
Instead, they look to move the ball forward quickly at every opportunity.
In-depth Opta data, which measures the average speed teams advance up the pitch, show Cardiff and Millwall are by far the quickest in the division. These two teams also average the fewest passes per sequence of play.
This approach demands aerial strength in attack and both Millwall and Cardiff are at the top of the Championship standings for winning headers, with Steve Morison and Kenneth Zohore acting as focal points.
The tactic has allowed both teams to regularly enter the opposition's final third - and as a result, both feature among the top five when it comes to shots on target per game this season.
Add in Cardiff's strength from set-pieces - they have scored 18 times from dead ball situations this season - and important goal scoring contributions from midfield (Cardiff's Callum Paterson has nine, Millwall's George Saville 10) and it becomes clear why both sides have proved such a handful.
That has all been backed up by a solid defence. Cardiff have the best record in the division, conceding just 33 times in 39 games, while Millwall have let in only 39 in 40.
Neither team have been without their critics, though, with both managers having to defend their styles.
Do you want to see shots on target or us pass the ball across the halfway line?
Warnock said earlier this season: "What do you want as a fan? Do you want to see shots on target or do you want us to pass the ball across the pitch on the halfway line? If I get criticised for wanting to entertain and enjoy chances and crosses and shots then fire away, yeah, yeah, that's the Warnock Way - you'll get plenty of that."
While Harris told the Evening Standard last month: "I wanted a hungry side that epitomised our fanbase. We play like a Millwall team. Millwall fans do not want 30 or 40 passes in their own half, they want the ball forward in the opponents' half. The style of play is key here."
Millwall fans don't want 30 or 40 passes in their own half.
Going into the final straight of the season, their teams have momentum and confidence on their side, too. Cardiff top the Championship form table alongside Fulham, with 16 points from their past six games, while Millwall are next best and unbeaten in their last 14.
Both teams will have to overcome teams around them in the league in their final fixtures - starting with their crunch contests coming up this weekend. Both will no doubt relish another opportunity to show why they deserve to compete with the best teams in the Championship.
Don't miss the Sky Bet Championship clash between Cardiff and Wolves on Friday night, live on Sky Sports Football from 7pm
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