Championship rivals appoint ex-Sunderland and Preston North End boss as new head coach

Millwall have confirmed the appointment of former Sunderland boss Alex Neil as their next permanent head coach.

The Lions have been seeking a replacement for Neil Harris since he left the club for a second time earlier this month, and have been linked with a swoop for free agent Neil repeatedly in recent weeks. On Monday morning, it was announced that the Scot has put pen to paper on a long-term contract at The Den.

During his time with Sunderland, Neil guided the club to promotion via the League One play-offs, before leaving Wearside to join Stoke City. He has been out of work since parting company with the Potters last December, and has also spent time in charge of Preston North End and Norwich City, among others.

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Addressing Neil’s arrival at Millwall, chairman James Berylson, said: “We’re excited to welcome Alex to the club. Having met with him over the last couple of weeks, I have really enjoyed his passion and energy for the role.

“We have a clear vision and strategy at the club that Alex is aligned with, and he has some really exciting ideas of how we can progress with those objectives and ambitions together across the entire club. All our support is there for Alex, and I can’t wait to see what he can do for us. I, alongside everybody at Millwall, wish him the very best as our new head coach.”

The Lions’ Director of Football, Steve Gallen, added: “This has been a thorough and efficient recruitment process, and we’re really pleased to welcome Alex Neil as head coach. A number of factors were analysed extensively during this process to ensure that we appoint that right person for the role.

“Ultimately, Alex has an excellent track record in The Championship for results and development of young talent, as well as many other attributes that we feel confident will drive us forward as a club. Alex’s hunger to take this football club to the next level was clear during the several conversations we had. He has proven methods that have worked successfully in a hugely competitive League and has exciting ideas of how he sees this team developing. We’re delighted to welcome to him to Millwall and I look forward to working closely with Alex.”