Alex Neil reveals double Millwall FC blow from Leeds United affair | OneFootball

The Millwall boss has confirmed injuries to Femi Azeez and George Honeyman

Millwall’s late 1-0 victory over Stoke City will be marred by a double injury blow disclosed by Alex Neil.

Femi Azeez was withdrawn in the tie’s 79th minute with a suspected hamstring injury, following similar issues at the Lions’ away defeat to Bristol City last week.

Millwall were also without midfielder George Honeyman, following his withdrawal against Leeds United midweek.

Manager Alex Neil has provided clarity on the pair’s injury concerns.

Alex Neil confirms injury blow to George Honeyman and Femi Azeez

“George will be quicker than Femi,” Neil told reporters on Saturday afternoon.

“Femi, it depends on how bad it is at the moment. I think it’ll be about four weeks. George will probably be two to three.

His comments follow a concerning midweek injury update.

“George, we’ll need to scan, I think it might be his groin,” Neil said in the aftermath of the 2-0 defeat to Leeds on Wednesday.

“Femi, I think it’s his hamstring but I’m not sure how bad it is because he has had a couple of issues with his hamstring hence the reason why he didn’t start on Saturday as well.

“It was disappointing, losing George. I think we needed his running power, we needed his know-how in terms of triggering the press and different bits like that and then we lost him.

“We need to make an early sub, which is not ideal. I think at that point Leeds were probably on top in the game so I tried to stiffen up the middle of the pitch to give ourselves an opportunity later in the game so we can then go and try and go for that a little bit more.

“So it’s disappointing to lose George. The reason I kept a change, I had to change George first half and then made a couple of early substitutions in the second half and then I had to hold onto my third one if somebody does get injured and Femi did. So Femi then went down, had to then change him. Those are a couple bits we needed to sort of manage.

Injuries to Azeez and Honeyman are major blow for Millwall's upward momentum

Neil's injury update comes at a crucial time for the Lions, who sit just a few shy of the play-off positions following their dramatic late victory over Stoke City.

The narrow win, secured through Mihailo Ivanovic's last-minute penalty, provides a much-needed boost to Millwall's promotion aspirations.

However, the expected absence of Azeez for approximately four weeks and Honeyman for two to three weeks will test the squad's depth as they prepare to face promotion-chasing Sunderland after the international break.

The timing of the pause could prove beneficial, giving Neil's squad time to regroup and potentially welcome back some of their injured players.

Despite these setbacks, Neil's post-match comments revealed satisfaction with the team's second-half performance against Stoke, suggesting the Lions have the resilience needed to navigate this challenging period.