Millwall: Alex Neil urges Lions to embrace Championship promotion battle as race for second automatic spot and play-off places heats up
Millwall can seal play-off place on Saturday but also in mix for automatic promotion after Ipswich slip-up; Alex Neil calls for his players to have "fire in your belly but a cool head" in big moments; watch Millwall vs QPR live on Sky Sports+ on Saturday; kick-off 12.30pm
Thursday 16 April 2026 17:21, UK
Millwall should have "zero fear" as the race for promotion from the Championship heats up, says boss Alex Neil.
The Lions are the league's surprise package, sitting third with four games to play, and can go second with victory over QPR on Saturday lunchtime, live on Sky Sports+, ahead of Ipswich's showdown with Middlesbrough on Sunday.
They will also seal a play-off place if they win and Wrexham fail to beat Stoke.
But Millwall have been on a rollercoaster in recent weeks, moving up into the automatic promotion places for the first time with a win at promotion rivals Middlesbrough, before defeat at home to Norwich and a draw at West Brom saw Ipswich take the initiative in the chase to join Coventry in the top two.
However, there was another twist on Tuesday, with Ipswich - who have a game in hand - surprisingly beaten at Portsmouth.
That is a result which has "left things quite open for everyone", says Neil, but he is urging Millwall's players not to be overwhelmed by the pressure and instead enjoy the situation, given the club were last in the Championship play-offs in 2002.
"You never know when this opportunity is going to come back round again. Don't be a passenger and let it pass by you," said Neil when asked what his message to his players is. "Make sure that you enjoy every moment of it and give it your best shot.
"From our perspective, we should have zero fear. We should embrace the situation and give everything we've got and see where that takes us."
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There has been focus in the Premier League on Arsenal's nerves as they try to secure their first title in over two decades and Neil admitted some "tension" had crept into his team's performance at the Hawthorns last week.
Speaking about the mentality required to get over the line, Neil - who has steered Norwich and Sunderland to play-off promotions - said: "Keeping a fire in your belly but a cool head when it matters most can determine key moments in games and no more so than at the business end of the season when you need to find a way to be effective and to win."
Amid discussions among the Millwall fanbase on whether they will achieve automatic promotion or have to settle for the play-offs, Neil is also keen to keep the club's position in context, stating his team have "given Millwall fans one of the best seasons they've had in decades".
He said: "At the start of the season, if I said to anyone that we would get into the play-offs, everyone would be absolutely buzzing because that's been an aim we've wanted to try to achieve for the club for such a long period of time.
"Now, does it mean that we're satisfied with that? Absolutely not. And I think this is where we need to get a bit of perspective on things.
"Do we want to try and go up automatically? Of course we do. Who wouldn't?
"But would we be disappointed with the play-offs? Absolutely 100 per cent not, because it gives us an opportunity to see where we can go in that and fight our corner and hopefully produce some strong performances and try and win some more games.
"So, as far as we're concerned, we're in a really good spot."
