Millwall must look at Nottingham Forest player with real regret: View | OneFootball

Highlights

Harry Toffolo has worked extremely hard to get to the top.

Many Premier League players have been at the top level for the entirety of their careers, but the same can not be said for Toffolo, who only made his top-flight debut at the age of 27.

While he started his career with Norwich City, who were in the top flight at the time, he never managed any first-team league minutes and instead spent spells on loan with Swindon Town, Rotherham United, Peterborough United, Scunthorpe United and Doncaster Rovers.

Each of these loan spells essentially molded Toffolo into the Premier League player he is today. Learning his trade in League One, and briefly the Championship with Rotherham, was essential for Toffolo's future, as he was getting very limited opportunities with his parent club, Norwich.

His spell with Swindon Town during the 2014/15 season will be one Toffolo fondly remembers, as he assisted eight league goals from left-back, and scored one in his first-ever full campaign in senior football.

After a few seasons out on loan, Toffolo departed Carrow Road in the hopes of permanent first-team football, but unfortunately, it wasn't quite plain sailing to begin with.

Harry Toffolo never made an impact at Millwall

The left-back signed for Millwall on a permanent, short-term deal back in January 2018. It was an exciting move for both parties, as Toffolo had shown promising ability on loan in League One and looked ready for the step-up into the Championship with the Lions.

Upon signing, he spoke to the Millwall FC media and expressed his excitement.

"Every time I've played at The Den against Millwall, they've always been a great team to play against; very well-structured and I look forward to working with the manager and his group of players."

"To able to call The Den 'home' for the next few months is fantastic. I can't wait to get started. Any time I've played here the atmosphere has been electric and I've always wondered what it would be like being on the other side of the fence. Now I am, I can enjoy it and look forward to my first game."

Unfortunately, that first game never arrived as Toffolo received a total of zero minutes for Millwall. Neil Harris, the manager at the time, was set on James Meredith as his starting left-back, so much so that Toffolo failed to even make the bench, and was only named as a substitute on one occasion.

He departed the Den in the summer of 2018, and his next career steps will now haunt Millwall forever.

Harry Toffolo has gone from strength to strength since leaving The Den

The 28-year-old dipped into League Two following his departure from Millwall, to play with Lincoln City; the best decision of his career so far. The Imps had just achieved promotion from non-league and would go on to secure back-to-back promotions to League One.

Toffolo played a big role in that League Two promotion campaign, despite his Millwall setback, as he grabbed 10 league goal contributions and started every one of Lincoln's league games at left-back.

The first half of the 2019/20 campaign was spent with Lincoln in League One before he transferred to Huddersfield Town, where he was finally able to prove his worth in the second tier.

His performances for Huddersfield in the Championship were valuable throughout his two and a half years with the club, as he almost helped his side achieve promotion to the Premier League. Upon falling short in the play-off final, he signed for newly-promoted Nottingham Forest, where his dream of playing top-flight football began.

Since signing for Forest in 2022, he has been a useful option at left-back in their fight to remain in the Premier League.

Millwall supporters may have watched Toffolo over the last few years with huge regret - he never made an impact at The Den but has gone from strength to strength since.