Alex Neil could surprise us all at 7pm tonight by dropping star striker vs Watford

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Millwall are not exactly firing on all cylinders this season, so we could see Alex Neil make a major team selection choice tonight when his team face Watford.

Last season, Millwall ended up being one of the surprise packages in the Championship. An impressive late run under Alex Neil saw the Lions narrowly miss out on a play-off spot.

For many, Millwall were touted as dark horses to be among that fight again this term. But things haven’t quite gone to plan so far.

They’ve not been bad, but two wins, two defeats, and a draw is the kind of inconsistency Neil will want to avoid. We know Alex Neil is open to tactical changes, too, and we think he will have a surprise in store for Watford on Monday night.

• READ MORE: Charlton Athletic and Millwall to achieve feat not seen in 50 years in Championship’s south London derby

Mihailo Ivanovic out, Macauley Langstaff in for Millwall

In our Championship score predictions for this week, we had Millwall vs Watford down for a score draw. If Neil wants to have the advantage, he may need to shake things up in attack.

While his 12 goals were crucial to Millwall’s efforts last season, we’ve not seen the best of Mihailo Ivanovic this term.

Last time out, against Charlton Athletic, the Serbian forward failed to register a shot, had just 23 touches, and had a duel success rate of just 27.28% across the match.

Replacing him with the more experienced, more route-one option of Macauley Langstaff might sound counter-intuitive. But, sometimes, you have to go back to basics to get things done.

There’s no denying Ivanovic is the better player. However, bringing in Langstaff, who will be hungry to prove himself, could work wonders. It also wouldn’t hurt to give Ivanovic a motivational kick by dropping him to the bench.

• READ MORE: Alex Neil will fear Mihailo Ivanovic’s Millwall contract update after Leicester City links

Millwall and Watford are both on bad runs

Millwall have lost their two home games so far this season. They’ll be desperate to put that right and avoid registering three consecutive home defeats for the first time since 2015/16.

Likewise, Watford have been poor on the road. The Hornets have picked up just two points in their last eight away games. So, who will come out on top in this bizarre battle?

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
11	PortsmouthPortsmouth	6	2	2	2	4	5	-1	8
12	CharltonCharlton	6	2	2	2	4	5	-1	8
13	Hull CityHull City	6	2	2	2	10	12	-2	8
14	NorwichNorwich	6	2	1	3	9	9	0	7
15	WrexhamWrexham	6	2	1	3	11	12	-1	7
16	MillwallMillwall	5	2	1	2	4	7	-3	7
17	IpswichIpswich	5	1	3	1	9	5	4	6
18	BlackburnBlackburn	5	2	0	3	5	5	0	6
19	SouthamptonSouthampton	6	1	3	2	7	9	-2	6
20	Oxford UnitedOxford United	6	1	2	3	9	10	-1	5
21	WatfordWatford	5	1	2	2	5	6	-1	5

Well, Watford won at the Den last season, with a 3-2 victory. If they can win tonight, they’ll register back-to-back away wins against the Lions for the first time since 2012.

Aside from that result, though, Millwall are on a pretty good run against Watford. They have won four of their last six league meetings, with one draw and that defeat last season.

Everything points to a share of the spoils here with both teams trying to end their bad runs, and winding up cancelling each other out.