"I'm concerned" - Millwall FC fear raised involving Alfie Doughty | OneFootball

Millwall signed the 25-year-old earlier this summer

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more …

Millwall defender Alfie Doughty recently suffered a hamstring injury during the Lions’ 3-0 defeat against Middlesbrough.

The 25-year-old was withdrawn in the 57th minute, clutching his leg, and was replaced by Zak Sturge.

Millwall manager Alex Neil stated that the player won’t be back “anytime soon” when speaking to NewsAtDen, which will come as a heavy blow for the East London outfit.

Doughty joined the Lions from Luton Town earlier this summer and made an instant impact, creating Macaulay Langstaff’s late winner against Norwich City on the opening day.

Football League World’s Millwall fan pundit, Lucas Ball, believes that the left-sided player’s absence will be tough for Neil and Co. to take in the coming weeks.

Millwall’s creative output questioned following Alfie Doughty injury

“I think Alfie Doughty has shown, even in just a couple of games, that he's been a really good addition,” stated Lucas. “He’s added some real quality down that left-hand side.

“I think, particularly in terms of what he specifically brings, he is a big loss, and we need to find that creativity from somewhere else. I think someone like Femi Azeez needs to be keener to get the ball in the box than he was against Middlesbrough.

“There were a lot of crossing opportunities, particularly on the left, that weren't taken, and we often ended up recycling the ball back to the halfway line. It will be interesting to see how Alex Neil tries to cater for that. He's obviously done a really good job and mixed things up a lot since he's been in charge so I'm confident he will find the solution in terms of Doughty’s injury.

“He's not the best defensive fullback in the world ever. I think that’s probably why he's played left wing. In Zak Sturge, we've got a more than adequate replacement at left-back. He’s a very serviceable player in there and looked pretty good off the bench against Middlesbrough.

“I’m concerned in terms of how we can look to replicate that quality and delivery from set pieces and open play on the right-hand side. It'll be interesting to see how Alex Neil tries to balance the side.

“I've got faith in the team going up to Sheffield United and we should still retain some confidence from a really good opening day win on the road. We've got a fairly decent record against Sheffield United, and we won there earlier this year, so I don't think I’ll be too disheartened going into the weekend.”

Alfie Doughty’s absence will be a bitter blow for Millwall

The last thing any supporter wants to see is one of their club’s new, exciting signings suffer immediate injury issues, curtailing the player’s impact on the side.

Millwall fans will be feeling this pain tenfold, as Doughty looked to slot straight into Neil’s system and would’ve no doubt have caused problems for the majority of the Lions’ opponents.

The East London outfit will have to adapt to the 25-year-old’s absence quickly though, as they aim to hand Sheffield United their third straight league defeat next time round in the Championship.