Alex Neil Says Millwall ‘Didn’t Deserve to Lose’ to Newcastle — The Stats Make Tough Reading

Willock struck in the 81st minute to finally break Millwall's resistance and give Matthias Jaissle's Newcastle a 1-0 victory at The Den.

The result means Newcastle are now five games unbeaten, while Millwall's cup run has come to an end.

Neil was disappointed with the result and felt his side had produced enough to take the Premier League visitors all the way.

“My overriding emotion once the game is finished is I’m disappointed to lose it because I didn’t think we deserved to lose,” the Millwall boss said.

He added that Newcastle had created “a couple of little bits” around the edge of the box but believed his side had limited the visitors to very little.

Alex Neil defends Millwall performance

Neil pointed to the number of changes made by both teams and Millwall's ongoing injury problems as evidence of the quality of his side's performance.

“I thought it was a really good performance from us,” he said.

“Everybody who is connected with Millwall knows we are going through a bit of an injury scenario where we’ve got a lot of players missing.”

Neil was particularly pleased that his team were able to compete with a Newcastle side enjoying an excellent run of form.

He claimed Millwall had “more than held our own” against Premier League opposition and argued that Newcastle had been restricted to very little.

There is certainly credit due to the Lions for making the game difficult and remaining in contention deep into the second half.

But the statistics suggest Newcastle were the dominant team for much of the contest.

Newcastle's dominance tells a different story

Newcastle finished with 63 per cent possession, compared with Millwall's 37 per cent.

More significantly, the visitors registered 25 shots to Millwall's nine, had six efforts on target compared with two and won 15 corners to just one.

Newcastle also had 30 touches inside the Millwall penalty area, while the home side recorded 21.

The Magpies' failure to turn that superiority into an earlier goal was the main reason Millwall remained alive in the contest.

Newcastle had opportunities to make their dominance count, particularly during a first half in which they controlled the game for long spells.

Millwall's resistance, some resolute defending and Newcastle's lack of clinical finishing kept the score level.

Eventually, however, the pressure told.

Joe Willock finally breaks Millwall resistance

The decisive moment arrived in the 81st minute when Willock found the breakthrough.

For Newcastle, it was a deserved reward for a performance in which they consistently pushed Millwall back and generated considerably more attacking pressure.

For the Lions, it was a particularly frustrating way to exit the competition given how long they had managed to stay within touching distance of an upset.

Neil felt the goal arrived just as Millwall were enjoying their best spell.

“Obviously we conceded the goal late on, which was disappointing considering I thought it probably came right off the back of our best moments and best momentum in the game,” he said.

That will make the defeat even harder for Millwall to take.

Millwall had their moments — but Newcastle had the chances

The home side were not completely without opportunities.

Their best chance came when a long ball caused problems for Tino Livramento, who was returning from a lengthy injury absence.

The resulting effort struck the post.

Millwall also had a number of scrambles inside the Newcastle penalty area, but their two shots on target ultimately failed to seriously test Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dúbravka's replacement.

Newcastle, meanwhile, continually threatened from set-pieces and open play.

The 15 corners to one statistic underlines the extent of the territorial advantage enjoyed by the visitors.

Referee decisions add another layer

Neil also questioned one potential handball incident in the Newcastle penalty area.

“There was also an incident where it looked like a handball to me where the lad sort of looks like he leads with his arm. It will be interesting to see that back.”

The decision was not given, and there was no VAR intervention to revisit the incident.

There was also frustration around the use of yellow cards, with Newcastle's opponents eventually receiving a booking in the second half.

From Newcastle's perspective, however, there was an argument that they should have had penalty appeals of their own, particularly involving Fabian Schär during set-piece situations.

Ultimately, neither side got the benefit of a spot-kick and the game was decided by Willock's late finish.

Jaissle's Newcastle keep rolling

For Jaissle, the most important outcome was another win.

Newcastle have now gone five matches unbeaten, and the victory sends them through to the last 16 of the Carabao Cup.

Their team showed patience after failing to make their superiority count early, eventually finding the breakthrough when the pressure was becoming increasingly difficult for Millwall to withstand.

That is the difference between a good performance and a result at this level.

Millwall can take encouragement from their competitiveness and from the way they made Newcastle work for the victory.

But while Neil may feel his side deserved more, the numbers point towards a different conclusion.

Newcastle had 63 per cent possession, 25 shots, six on target and 15 corners. Millwall had 37 per cent possession, nine shots, two on target and one corner.

Willock's 81st-minute goal did not make Newcastle dominant — it finally put the scoreline in line with the balance of the game.