Millwall, Leeds United & Sunderland position in Championship table under Neil Harris results only

Neil Harris will take charge of his final Millwall game against Middlesbrough on Saturday after his imminent departure from the club was surprisingly announced earlier this week.

The ex-Nottingham Forest and Lions player returned for a second managerial spell at the Den back in February with the brief of getting Millwall away from the Championship relegation zone. The Lions had picked up just 33 points when Harris returned to the club and were just one point above the bottom three. Come the end of the season, they had shot up to 13th as they ended the campaign with a 1-0 win at Swansea City, which saw them leapfrog on the Welsh club to finish top just outside the top half.

Harris' final game in charge at the Den was a 1-0 loss to Sheffield United on Wednesday night. He opened up afterwards about his decision to leave the club. He said: “Obviously, I’m disappointed with the outcome in my final game as Millwall manager at home. It’s been a tough 48 hours for everybody, quite emotional last 24 hours, not just for me and my family, but also the players as well yesterday when I broke the news to them and the staff.

“The way they conducted themselves, it’s just a privilege for me to be their manager. They’re brilliant lads. The difference in the game tonight was just that little bit of quality that we lack at times, but certainly no effort or desire or game understanding of getting into certain areas. So it’s been an absolute privilege and pleasure. I’m so proud to have represented this club as a player and a leader of the dressing room. I know it’s the right time for change for all of us, and the club have been unbelievably supportive with that viewpoint.

“It’s the right time for me, but also, I think it’s right time for the football club to go in a different direction to bring in a manager that maybe has different ideas and that works in a different way to me. Look, when I took the job in February, it was a real debate whether I was taking the job. I ultimately took the job because I promised the late John Berylson, that I’d come back in the hour of need. I really wanted to work with Jimmy, with his son, and it’s been an absolute privilege to have served both of them and have a brilliant relationship with both.

“Jimmy’s a really, really good man and really supportive of me. But it was only going to be to the end of this season. And that was very clear from day one. Very clear with the supporters, was very clear with everybody within the football club it was going to be to the end of the season. Sometimes when you’re just heading towards the January transfer window, you just need to give somebody new an opportunity to look towards a transfer window. Timing just became clear for me personally in the last week or two, that it was the right time for both parties.”

Since his arrival in February, only three Championship sides have collected more points than Millwall. Leeds United lead the way with 62 points while Middlesbrough are second on 55. West Brom have picked up 52 while Millwall have 51. While some sides were promoted and relegated and have played fewer games in the second tier over that period, the tally still highlights the admirable work done by Harris to be up there alongside the likes of Middlesbrough and West Brom while picking up more points than teams like Sunderland, Norwich City and Blackburn Rovers.