Millwall blow as £3m record signing likely to miss Luton Town and QPR clashes

Millwall continue to sweat over the fitness of club record signing Mihailo Ivanovic ahead of the return of the Championship this weekend following the international break.

The Lions are looking to pick up where they left off after a 3-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday at The Den late last month. This weekend, Neil Harris welcomes Luton Town to Millwall before a short trip to QPR next weekend.

Millwall finished the transfer window with a late flurry of business on Deadline Day. Harris had already spoken about a need for attacking signings with Kevin Nisbet heading to Aberdeen on loan and Tom Bradshaw picking up an injury, which was then compounded by the sale of Zian Flemming to Championship rivals Burnley.

The Lions recruited Middlesbrough man Josh Coburn on loan and also splurged £3 million to bring Ivanovic to Millwall from Vojvodina. That was a record outlay for the 19-year-old, who didn't make the squad against Sheffield Wednesday.

There had been hopes that Serbian could make his debut against Luton Town or QPR but that has now been thrown into doubt due to a metatarsal issue, which Harris had admitted after victory over the Owls.

Despite the injury, Ivanovic was called up for Serbian national duty and was seen in training sessions, which appeared to suggest a quicker return than first thought. However, Ivanovic has since been withdrawn from the squad for clashes against Spain and Denmark with a hamstring issue as well.

Speaking to the South London Press, Harris has now provided clarity on the situation as he once again complimented the player’s ‘pedigree’ and ‘potential’. He said: “To get the call up and to meet the Serbian head coach and players for the first time, is a great honour.

“We thought it was really important that he went. The debate over training, they made a judgement call in the first few days and then decided to maybe take a step backwards and let him come back to England and follow the procedure that we have set up.

“He’s going to see a specialist this week here to determine what the next step is for him. At the moment, that’s unclear until Thursday afternoon to determine what the next steps are going to be. He will see a top specialist in London and then we will be able to make a formal plan off that.

“We’re very hopeful that there is going to be a resolution very quickly and that he’s on the pitch in the short term for us.”