Can The Lions upset the tipsters?

Last updated : 04 August 2008 By The Blue Pimpernel
Kenny Jackett
Jackett: Looking for the missing link
Millwall will be scrapping for their League One survival next season if the national press are to be believed.

While the News of the World had The Lions down as finishing in 20th spot The Times and The Telegraph both had Kenny Jackett's men as relegation fodder, with The Times citing the board room squabbles that blighted the club over the summer as one of the reasons behind their prediciton of a 22nd place finish. The bookies are just as pessimistic about the club's chances, with some offering as little as 3/1 to go down.

The opinions of certain reporters can be dismissed due to their tendencies to be biased towards teams at The Den, bookies are not known for getting their forecasts wrong.

However, there was better news in the Evening Standard, with The Lions tipped as possible play-off contenders, possibly due to the team's impressive pre-season results.

So, who will be right come May? The Evening Standard have a knack of being there or there abouts with their predictions while the nationals have a reputation of throwing darts randomly at the board and seeing how many stick. Surely The Lions pre-season counts for something?

Most fans remain unconvinced, citing a lack of a proven goalscorer as the major flaw in Jackett's plans for the forthcoming season. Jackett himself acknowledges this shortcoming and has made several failed attempts to sign another forward. What's more, he doesn't seem to know what his best team is, chopping and changing through the many games his team have played over the past six weeks.

He seems to be looking for that missing link - the ingredient that will allow everything to fall into place. Whether or not he can secure the player in question before Saturday and prove the doubters wrong remains to be seen.