Millwall’s FA Cup dream is still alive as Shaun Cummings scored a 90th minute winner at The Den to send The Lions into the quarter finals of the FA Cup and only one game away from a semi-final at Wembley.
The Lions now face a plumb tie in the shape of a London derby against Tottenham Hotspur in the quarter finals.
Millwall showed no fear against the struggling champions of England Leicester City, as the Londoners looked to create another magical moment in the FA Cup. Going into the game Millwall were on a 12-game unbeaten run and speaking to the Millwall official club website before the game manager Neil Harris said, “We are on a really good run of form. It’s a chance for our boys to cause another upset.”
In this season’s competition Millwall have already played host to two Premier League sides in Bournemouth and Watford, both of whom were knocked out with relative ease, as each side made numerous changes to their regular Premier League starting 11.
Hope
Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri made 10 changes from his starting 11 that lost to Swansea last weekend with Demarai Gray the only player retaining his place, which would have given the Millwall players hope before kick-off.
Millwall’s manager Harris made only the one change from their midweek win over Port Vale, as Shane Ferguson came in for Jed Wallace.
Millwall fans were in full voice before kick off as they looked to create one of the best atmospheres The Den has seen for a while, as they sung their traditional song ‘Let ‘em come’ before kick-off.
Millwall players knew fans would play a vital role in the game by making the stadium as loud possible, meaning it would be difficult for the Leicester players to play their normal game.
It was a very even match that saw chances for both teams in the first half, but there was a lack of quality upfront for both sides and fans were left disappointed as the teams went in at half time.
Challenge
Leicester perhaps had the best of the chances in the first half with Gray and Shinji Okazaki both going close, but neither were able to put the ball into the back of the net.
Millwall couldn’t have started the second half any worse. In the 52nd minute Jake Cooper received his second yellow card after a strong challenge on Ahmed Musa. This left his Millwall team mates with a tough challenge of playing with a man less in the second half.
Jordan Archer was Millwall’s saviour in the first and second half after making numerous saves, in situations where perhaps Leicester should have scored – especially in the 80th minute when Archer made a save from six yards where Okazaki should have put Leicester ahead.
However, with time ticking out, The Den erupted as Lee Gregory played the ball through on to Cummings who coolly slotted the ball underneath Ron-Robert Zieler, sending the Millwall fans into euphoria.
Celebrate
The game was overshadowed after the final whistle as Millwall fans ran on to the pitch to celebrate the dramatic win with the players. Some fans however went to confront the Leicester followers in the away end, with objects being thrown by both sets of fans and police eventually having to come onto the pitch to prevent any fighting.
After the game, Harris told Millwall’s official club website: “Results like that don’t just happen, we’ve got quality and we’ve got spirit and understanding.”
Leicester manager Ranieri, speaking to Leicester’s official club website, admitted they deserved to lose as he said “They showed more character and more heart than us. At the end they deserved to win.”
Millwall’s next game is at home to Chesterfield on Tuesday February 20th, as they continue to fight for a playoff place which could see them potentially play in the Championship next season. Leicester on the other hand will be travelling to Spain to take on Spanish giants Sevilla in the last 16 of the Champions League, which is Leicester’s last hope of glory this season.