‘We switched off’ – Neil Harris assesses Millwall’s pre-season defeat against Premier League side Nottingham Forest

Millwall boss Neil Harris says his side were punished for switching off in their 2-1 pre-season defeat against Premier League side Nottingham Forest in Spain on Tuesday evening.

Goals from Chris Wood and Callum Hudson-Odoi saw Nuno Espirito Santo’s move into a 2-0 lead at the Pinatar Arena in Murcia.

Aidomo Emakhu pulled one back in the final 15 minutes of normal time but the Lions suffered their first defeat of pre-season.

“A great workout,” Harris told MillwallTV.

“They were sharper than us for the majority of the game.

“They looked like they had acclimatized to the weather having been here a week longer than us – it really helped

“It caught a few of the lads out with the speed of the game and the heat that they played in tonight.

“In the four games [so far] where we have been better than the opponents, I praised the way the opponent approached the game against us, I praise my players for that.

“The application and the attitude was there from the group, which is the main thing.

“It looks like we have come through unscathed, which is the absolute priority of the evening.

“Extended minutes into players and some good individual performances.

“A reminder for the players, when you play against Premier League opponents, if you switch off for a moment or are slightly sloppy for a moment, you get punished heavily.”

Millwall play Murcia on Friday before games against Colchester and Southampton before the start of the 2024-25 Championship season.

Harris added: “Against Bromley, Gillingham, Reading and Charlton, we were the better team in all four games and showed our level of quality.

“If you look at Forest tonight, they were a step ahead of us. 

“Some of the passing, movement, creativity to their play and one-touch football was outstanding.

“I would like to credit my players for their defensive organisation, shape and attitude.

“We switched off two or three times in the game, and we were punished twice.

“You can’t afford to make those decisions when you go up the levels.”