Birmingham City 4-0 Millwall: Blues score four again in emphatic win
Birmingham recorded a 4-0 victory for the second time in four days as they clinically dispatched in-form Millwall in the Championship.
Chris Davies' side were in devastating form as they followed up Saturday's thumping of Portsmouth at St Andrew's by recording another impressive victory at home.
Paik Seung-ho set them on their way in the 28th minute with his third of the season before Demarai Gray sidefooted in the second in the last minute of the half.
Alex Cochrane smashed a left-foot volley past Max Crocombe in the Millwall goal to make it three within four minutes of the second period and Jay Stansfield added a fourth in the 66th minute to cap a ruthless show.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
It brought a sudden halt to the Lions' five-game unbeaten run - four of which they had won while keeping three clean sheets.
But Millwall boss Alex Neil can have few complaints at the outcome - although it took a superb stop from James Beadle to prevent Luke Cundle from giving the visitors an early lead.
The England under-21 international was alert, stopping a beautifully struck 25-yard volley to keep the two sides on level terms.
Download the Sky Sports app
Watch EFL on Sky with NOW
Birmingham first threatened in the 27th minute when Stansfield's snap-shot from the edge of the area tested Crocombe at his near post.
But 60 seconds later they struck.
Marvin Ducksch fed Patrick Roberts on the right and the former Manchester City man created sufficient space to fire a ball across the area, where Paik hung back and drilled a low left-foot finish into the corner of the net.
Millwall still posed a threat. Camiel Neghli brought a save from Beadle, the ball rising up off the greasy surface.
But Birmingham struck again at the end of the first half.
Stansfield nipped in to win possession from Wes Harding on the halfway line and exchanged passes with Ducksch before the England under-21 international played the ball into the danger zone where Gray sidefooted his second of the season into an unguarded net.
Four minutes after the interval, the hosts extended their advantage still further.
Roberts, who had been lively all evening, lofted a right-wing cross to the edge of the area. Cochrane was waiting for the ball to come down and he caught it on the full, sending a rasping volley beyond Crocombe who was unsighted by one of his own players.
Birmingham, who saw a 29-game unbeaten home league run come to an end last month, were not finished.
Davies rang the changes and Keshi Anderson's short pass into Stansfield saw the striker win the battle for possession before he scored his seventh of the season by dispatching beyond the unprotected Crocombe.
Birmingham's Chris Davies:
"I've been saying to the players that I know what they're capable of - but they have to prove that.
"There's not been one day where I've sat there and thought, 'We are miles away' or 'We're not good enough'.
"I've told them numerous times that I believe in them a lot and that they have to bring it all together and show how good they are and the level they can get to in games.
"They have done that in the last two. I think they have put in performances, not just in the wins but in how we have played the games, with a real intensity, on the front foot.
"I wanted us to bring it all together and for them, for their confidence, to show what they can do at this level and I think this will help massively."
Millwall's Alex Neil:
"We got into a couple of good positions early on. But the first goal was hugely disappointing.
"From our point of view, the timing of the second - on the stroke of half-time - was horrendous.
"At that stage, you think, 'We need the next goal', but we're three down after 48, 49 minutes.
"We weren't as good as we have been recently. We didn't produce anywhere near the level we are capable of.
"We have been having a lot of credit recently and we're going to suffer some criticism from this. But I can take that."
The £250,000 is up for grabs with Super 6, and as always it is completely free to play. Entries by 3pm Saturday.
- Last
- April, 29
-
-
- April, 28
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
News by day
5 of November 2025