Opinion: Ruthless Millwall cup win proves Burnley couldn't afford to mess about
Boy this was needed.
In the midst of a 12-game run without a win in the Premier League, which has left Burnley eight points adrift of safety and has sparked growing pressure on manager Scott Parker, this cup game took on extra significance.
We’ve seen in the past, even pre-Parker, how much of an irrelevance these cup competitions can often be to the Clarets – often much to the annoyance of the fanbase.
Sean Dyche famously took little interest in cup runs while he was in charge at Turf Moor, which made his angry reaction to Nottingham Forest’s cup shock at the hands of Wrexham all the more noteworthy. Usually it was just a shrug of the shoulders.
Parker, meanwhile, made 10 changes at Reading at this stage of the competition last year, requiring extra-time to see off their League One opponents.
Eight changes didn’t stop Burnley from upsetting then Premier League side Southampton in the next round, before their run came to a crashing halt at Deepdale when an all-change line-up came badly unstuck in a 3-0 defeat.
Fast forward to this season and to the Carabao Cup, Parker’s men were fortunate to edge past Derby County in the second round before deservedly being beaten by third tier side Cardiff City. Again, both occasions saw the Clarets make wholesale changes.
Eight changes for this FA Cup third round tie against Millwall might suggest Parker wasn’t taking this game seriously either, but that doesn’t tell the full story.
The under-fire Clarets boss was still able to name a strong starting XI, while keeping Maxime Esteve, Josh Laurent and Lesley Ugochukwu as starters.
As for the players that came in, the majority of them are players pushing to be involved in the league anyway. I’m thinking the likes of Oliver Sonne, Hjalmar Ekdal, Quilindschy Hartman, Loum Tchaouna, Jacob Bruun Larsen and Jaidon Anthony.
It’s not like in previous cup ties where Parker has assembled an XI of fringe players and those in desperate need of minutes having barely had a sniff all season long, while filling the bench with youngsters. In fact, there wasn’t a single academy product among the substitutes. The bench was stacked, just in case the worst happened.
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They needn’t have worried though, this victory never looked in doubt. Once Burnley got their noses in front, which took just 11 minutes, the hosts didn’t look back.
Millwall, who made six-changes themselves, enjoyed a five to 10-minute spell midway through the first-half, threatening with a couple of headers. But while stand-in goalkeeper Max Weiss saved one of those headers with an excellent flying stop, he was otherwise relatively untested as he came in for Martin Dubravka.
But Burnley’s second through Loum Tchaouna, a goal that was badly needed for a winger that had started the game poorly, quickly extinguished any thoughts this might be a contest.
The gulf in quality was there to see, as Lions boss Alex Neil admitted himself. It was telling that Burnley’s three-goal half-time lead came as a result of their only three shots on target. Burnley did to Millwall what so many sides have done to them in the top flight this term – but it’s nice when the shoe is on the other foot, isn’t it?
You knew there were further goals in this for Burnley should they want them and they went and got them, adding a further two in the second half.
Ashley Barnes, starting for the first time this season, completed his first brace since THAT derby double against Blackburn in November 2022. If only he could have added a third, it would have completed a first career hat-trick for the 36-year-old.
Positivity
But still, it was refreshing to see the feelgood factor return to Turf Moor, even if only 6,856 were in attendance to witness it.
Even a sloppy late consolation goal for Millwall couldn’t ruin what was a day of many positives for the Clarets, with Jaydon Banel also recording his first ever Burnley goal.
Should we read too much into this result though, in terms of the bigger picture? Probably not.
Yes Millwall are going well in the Championship, sitting fifth, and this result perhaps only strengthened the feeling that Burnley are too good for the second tier but not quite up to it in the Premier League.
But this was a standalone fixture between a Premier League side that are still able to field a strong starting XI even when they make eight changes and a weakened Millwall outfit that badly missed the five players that dropped out, especially Femi Azeez and the dangerous Mihailo Ivanovic.
Still, you can only beat what’s in front of you and Burnley did it in style to claim a much-needed first win since October, ending a 77-day run. But will this have any bearing on what happens at Anfield next week when the Clarets take on the reigning Premier League champions?
Nevertheless, some performances will give Parker some food for thought. Jacob Bruun Larsen looked a class above playing in between the lines and picking out some key passes, while Jaidon Anthony looked revitalised after his midweek stunner.
Weiss, meanwhile, looks more than a safe pair of hands in between the sticks and should slip in just fine should Burnley end up back in the Championship next season.
But the day belonged to Barnes, rolling back the years to help fire Burnley into the next round. Hey, a nice run might be just the tonic we all need…
Your next Burnley FC read: Scott Parker's verdict on Burnley's cup thrashing of Millwall to end winless run