Millwall boss sends QPR clues on how to beat 'scrappy' Hull City after defeat at The Den

QPR could look to heed the warning message sent by Millwall manager Alex Neil ahead of taking on a Hull City side progressing under the tenure of former Reading and Southampton boss Ruben Selles.

The Tigers picked up a 1-0 win at The Den on Saturday as they look to climb out of a relegation dogfight. Selles has picked up three wins and three draws in his first nine fixtures in Yorkshire.

Speaking after a second-half Jake Cooper own goal proved decisive in separating the two sides in London at the weekend, Neil analysed how Hull City are playing under Selles. The former Sunderland and Stoke City head coach had particular praise for the midfield trio of Steven Alzare, Guastvao Puerta and Regan Slater.

Millwall manager breaks down Tigers’ threat

He said: “It was a scrappy game. We set up differently for a couple of reasons. Watching Hull, the best way to try and play around Hull – because they press from out to in and try to shut central areas off – you need to play outside of them.

“When we did get the ball down via the wing-backs we looked threatening. But if you are going to play that way you need an element of control, which means making some passes to take the sting out of their press. We didn’t do that. We turned the ball from front to back too often and it became a transition game. When that happens they have naturally got wingers in high positions and they are playing off the side of your centre-backs.

“What it did mean when we picked the ball up is we had more volume attacks going forward. We looked more threatening. We had a couple of decent chances in the first half and so did they. I felt towards the end of the first half they looked more likely to score than we did, that’s why I changed it at half-time to more match it up and make it a more conventional Millwall – so that it is a man-for-man battle."

That analysis could point to the importance of full-backs Kenneth Paal and Jimmy Dunne when taking on Hull City at the MKM Stadium tonight. Jonathan Varane and Sam Field could also prove vital in stopping the fixture from becoming a transition game in the way that cost Millwall.

Marti Cifuentes sizes up Hull City challenge

While Marti Cifuentes and the QPR coaching staff will have no doubt watched the Tigers' 1-0 win over Millwall back, Selles is a man who the R's boss knows well thanks to his time in Norway and Denmark.

Cifuentes said: "They have quality players and a coach that I know well from Scandinavia. He's obviously Spanish too and we know each other from a long time ago. He did a very good job at Reading.

"We know that they are going to be aggressive in the way that they press, on a big pitch, so we need to make sure we're ready for another big challenge. You know I always have full respect for the opposition. Our good form won't help us at all - it doesn't give us a one-goal advantage or anything like that. But we know that when we compete well, we are a team that can do so against anyone in the league. We have been showing that.

"To expect the game to be easy because we are in a good trend is not the reality of the league, it's the opposite. The most important thing is that the team continues to work in a humble way. It takes a lot to win games in this league and we need to keep growing as a team."