Alex Neil confirms major Millwall blow ahead of QPR | OneFootball

Millwall boss Alex Neil has confirmed Tristan Crama's injury is worse than the club initially thought ahead of the new 2026/27 season.

Millwall boss Alex Neil has confirmed that the ankle injury picked up by Tristan Crama in the win over Antwerp is ‘worse than we anticipated’.

The defender was a key figure for the Lions as they finished third in the Championship last season, as he played in every game and put in some huge performances for the side, whether at right-back or centre-back.

However, Crama picked up an ankle issue in the play-off semi-final defeat to Hull City, which delayed his involvement with the group going into pre-season.

But, after returning from the bench against Bromley last week, Neil handed Crama a start against Antwerp, as he looked to prove his fitness ahead of the League Cup tie against QPR on Saturday.

Alex Neil provides Tristan Crama injury update

Sadly for Crama, he has suffered a fresh ankle issue, after receiving a kick during the game against the Belgian outfit.

And, speaking to NewsAtDen, as quoted by Southwark News, Neil wouldn’t share how long he expects Crama to be out, but he admitted it wasn’t positive as they continue to assess the 24-year-old.

“Unfortunately, it’s worse than we anticipated, which is disappointing. We’ve still to get an opinion on it, in terms of the length of time and what’s required in terms of what happens.

“But it’s frustrating in the fact that it’s a contact injury – there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s not soft tissue. Soft tissue, generally, we would look at it and think, have we overexerted them? Have they done too much too soon? Have they played too many minutes? It’s a contact injury; it happened in the 10th minute. From that perspective, it's really frustrating.”

Tristan Crama will be a huge miss for Millwall

Obviously, it’s hard to speculate on how long Crama will be out, but, reading between the lines, it’s not good news.

Everyone who has seen him play will know that he is a fully committed player, so if he is having trouble with his ankle, it must be causing serious pain.

Now, it’s a case of waiting for further developments, which will no doubt come ahead of the QPR game in the League Cup.

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In the bigger picture, though, the concern at The Den will centre on how they adapt if Crama is absent for a prolonged period in the league, because he is a huge player for the team.

As mentioned, he is capable of playing in two positions, and his height, physicality and drive on the ball are going to be very difficult to replace. Plus, given he was an ever-present last season, we don’t know how Millwall will cope without one of their key men.

But, these things happen in football, so Neil and the hierarchy won’t be panicking, and perhaps the one saving grace is that the transfer window is still open, so if Crama is out for a lengthy period of time, they will be able to bring in cover.

That may be something they do anyway, as if Millwall are to push for automatic promotion once again, they will need a bigger squad in various areas, as that lack of depth was arguably a factor in why they ultimately came up short, as they lacked ways to change the game against Hull in the semi-final loss.