Seven-figure Millwall signing must step up if Zian Flemming leaves: View | OneFootball

Kevin Nisbet was signed to play alongside Zian Flemming for Millwall this season in hopes they could go one better than the 2022/23 season and make the play-offs.

However, following an injury-hit spell, the opposite has occurred, and the two have not been able to combine as a duo and fire Millwall into the playoffs, with the Lions now sitting in the lower reaches of the table, having flirted with relegation not too long ago.

So with reports suggesting that clubs are now circling for Flemming, Kevin Nisbet will need to work hard to prove he has the fitness to replace Millwall's Dutch number 10 next season, should he leave.

Millwall's battle with Nisbet's fitness

For the majority of this season, Nisbet has been playing well up front for the Lions.

He had managed to find the net within his first month at the club, and had performed to a decent standard throughout his early months at the club.

It was in late November and early December when he would score the majority of his goals.

However, he currently only sits on a total of five for the campaign, disappointing considering he was in good form when Millwall initially signed him from Hibernian.

However, following the Bermondsey side's home draw to Preston on 27th January, Nisbet would fail to feature again until mid-April having sustained a hamstring injury.

He had previously suffered an ACL tear at his former club in Scotland, and was always going to be a fitness risk for Millwall, which is why the Lions have taken precautions.

Through the clubs' three different managers this term, Nisbet has only completed a full 90-minute game only twice this season, according to transfermarkt.

He has made a few appearances lasting up to 90 minutes before becoming an injury-time substitute, as well as countless introductions from the bench too.

Neil Harris' call to arms for the Scotsman

Having become the club's third manager this term, following Joe Edwards' ill-fated spell and Gary Rowett's early season departure, Harris looks to be staying beyond this summer, and has issued a target for Nisbet to hit ahead of next season, as he seems to be part of the plans to help replace the goal threat of Flemming.

Speaking to South London Press, he said, “He’s got a long way to go.

"Nizzy is nowhere near fitness. He will take this in the right way, but needs to get himself fitter and sharper and healthier. That’s my demand.

"He is coming back from a long-term injury. We need to get him fitter over the course of the summer.

"He will have a programme to do over the summer and the challenge for him coming back at the end of June will be the same as the other players, get on that start line and make sure you are worthy of being a Millwall striker next year.

“If you are going to be a Millwall number nine you need to run like Tom Bradshaw does, that’s the demand from Nizzy. I’m going to help him, encourage him, and I look forward to working with him over the course of the next 12 months.”

Harris speaks from experience when he mentions becoming a Millwall number nine, being the club's all time top scorer with 135 goals in his sensational career at the Den.

Zian Flemming and Millwall's future

There is an expectation from all that surround Millwall that Flemming will depart this summer.

He has not hit the same form as he did in 2022/23 (15G/3A in 44 games), but that can partly be put down to the instability surrounding the club, and so interest may be high and Flemming himself may want to depart.

Last week it was reported that there was interest from MLS side San Jose Earthquakes, but clubs that have been in for the Dutchman before, such as Burnley, may also reignite their interest from last summer.

If he does move on, the future does not look too rosy for the Bermondsey club.

Flemming has been their top scorer for the last two seasons, and with the aforementioned Bradshaw also out of contract this summer, Millwall may end up losing two of their most reliable sources of goals.

So, therefore, it will be crucial for Nisbet to make a full recovery from his injury and finally prove to the club and the fans that he can recapture the red hot form which first tempted them to sign him.

Failing to do so may lead to the club being stuck with a striker that does not fit in or stay fit and ready to play. Plus, they will have new additions that will need to be given time to gel.

Ultimately then, all this could lead to yet another season of mid-table football for Lions fans to watch as the dreams of playoff chasers become a more distant memory.