David Wagner criticised his Norwich players for ‘losing their heads’ and ‘doing everything wrong’ as they slipped to a second consecutive 1-0 defeat in a fiery Championship clash at 10-man Millwall.
Tom Bradshaw grabbed the decisive strike in the first half at a rocking Den as the Canaries were unable to convert sustained spells of possession into clear-cut chances.
Millwall saw George Saville shown a late red card for a cynical lunge on Jonathan Rowe after Ashley Barnes and Jake Cooper had both been booked for a pair of hot-headed altercations.
Norwich had winger Borja Sainz sent off at West Brom on Boxing Day and “angry” boss Wagner insists his team’s discipline proved fatal once again under the Friday night lights.
Wagner, whose side now sit five points away from the play-off places, said: “It was just not good enough – it was a deserved defeat at the end of the day.
“It was intense but you have to be calm, do your stuff and play football – not get dragged into the situation and get the crowd on their side.
“We’ve done more or less everything wrong when you play here, especially at Millwall away, we fought with them more than we played and we played into their cards.
“Our experienced players know exactly what it’s about here, but we lost our head and this is what makes me really angry.
“How we started, we were able to get something out of this game.
“It’s frustrating and disappointing – we started well, were good and created our moments.
“Then we conceded after a counter and totally lost the focus. We didn’t play in the right areas and never really went forward in the right areas.”
City started brightly as Barnes shot straight at Matija Sarkic and Hwang Ui-jo fired wide of the post.
But it was the hosts who took the lead in the 18th minute when Bradshaw slid in from close range after Brooke Norton-Cuffy’s inviting low delivery across the face of goal.
Angus Gunn pulled off a brilliant pair of acrobatic saves to deny both Zian Flemming and Aidomo Emakhu either side of the break.
Tempers flared on the hour mark when Barnes and Cooper were booked and the atmosphere in Bermondsey reached boiling point.
Gunn once again kept City in it with a flying stop to deny Ryan Longman before Saville saw red with two minutes remaining for a challenge on a rampaging Rowe.
Millwall are now unbeaten in four after back-to-back wins and sit eight points clear of the Championship drop zone.
Boss Joe Edwards said: “That was a pleasure to be a part of.
“It hadn’t been what it should be at The Den so it was one of the big objectives to put it right.
“It took a bit longer than we would have liked – we want a certain atmosphere and energy from the fans but it’s our job to create that.
“The fans could see from the off that our desire and energy was there, it was what we wanted to be.
“It was very difficult for Norwich to play and when it got heated in the second half, it kicked everyone on even more.
“When we then go down to 10 and we have to ride it out, the fans have to help us get through that – it was a brilliant night for us.
“Millwall away is not a fixture people look forward to playing in. We want to add an element of control and quality to our game in possession, but we don’t want to do that at the cost of that fight and aggression.”
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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