Millwall

Millwall FC Queens Park Rangers FC Football Sport

Millwall kept their hopes of automatic promotion to the Premier League alive with a 2-0 win over Queens Park Rangers.

Following a week of poor results at Norwich and West Brom, Millwall got the start they desperately needed when Derek Mazou-Sacko calmly slotted the ball into the bottom left corner after three minutes.

The explosion of noise that followed when the ball hit the net showed how much this promotion race meant to Millwall.

Alex Neil's side were on top, and almost doubled their lead when Joe Walsh got into a mess in the QPR goal, and it dropped to Tristan Crama, who lifted it just over.

It was 2-0 just a couple of minutes later, though, Camiel Neghli with a brilliant piece of composure to leave the Hoops defenders on the floor before blasting the ball into the same left corner.

Millwall should have been 3-0 up after 25 minutes, after more shocking defending from QPR, which allowed Neghli to race in for his second, but his lobbed effort failed to dip into the net.

The visitors chances in the first half were limited to just two shots.

QPR made a quadruple change at half-time - with Issac Hayden, Nicolas Madsen, Steve Cook, and Rumarn Burrell all being introduced in an attempt to inject some energy into the team.

Burrell should have cut the deficit in half when a wonderful cross by Jake Clarke-Salter was met by the head of the striker, but he was unable to direct it goalwards.

Yet another defensive mix-up from QPR almost led to a 3-0 lead. Walsh stood waiting to claim Femi Azeez's cross from deep, but was lucky that Josh Coburn could not get any meaningful contact as he stretched for the ball.

QPR showed more fight in the opening 20 minutes of the second period than in any of the first.

With his first minutes since December, Illas Chair came inches away from pulling QPR back into the game after his driving shot from range whisked just past the left-hand post.

Patterson made a fantastic save with his foot to deny Millwall another opportunity to widen the lead. With how Neil's side had played, it could have easily been a five or six-goal advantage.

QPR managed their first shot on target in the 89th minute; Madsen's effort from the edge of the box was comfortably gathered by Anthony Patterson.

For the hosts, though, it was a brilliant performance, and one that they so badly needed. All they could do was continue to find a way to win and hope that those around them slipped up.