“That’s football” – Tom Bradshaw reacts to Millwall player departure | OneFootball

Benik Afobe has joined Hatta Club after leaving Millwall this month, swapping the Championship for the United Arab Emirates’ second tier.

The journeyman striker has left English football for the second time, and it could be the last as he moves towards the twilight years of his career.

Afobe enjoyed some great moments in scoring 12 league goals for the Lions last season, but the first half of this term was not as fruitful and an exit appeared to be the best course of action for both parties.

The departure has put further importance on the performances of Tom Bradshaw in the coming months, and the former Barnsley striker offered an honest reaction to Afobe’s exit when he spoke to NewsAtDen, quotes provided by Southwark News.

He said: “I was over the moon when Benik came back.”

“It was quite widely publicised that Benik and I got on really well both on and off the pitch, but that’s football sometimes! Sometimes options come up which are the best thing for the player and the club, and from knowing Benik, he has a lot of ties over in Dubai.

“I think it was the right thing for him personally.

“It was bittersweet where I was happy that it was the right thing and it worked out well for him, but obviously from my perspective I was sad to see him go because I got on well with him and enjoyed our partnership.

“I think I saw that he scored in his first game over there and he seems like he’s enjoying it, so fair play to him and hopefully I’ll see him over the summer at some point.”

Bradshaw has scored seven goals in 22 league outings this term, 20 of them being starts, but he has actually only scored in four of those games, with a hat-trick and a brace boosting his tally.

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The Lions will be on the look-out for another striker to come in before the transfer deadline, especially with Bradshaw’s fitness being up and down over the last few seasons.

It was nice to see Afobe return to Millwall and come up with some memorable moments, but at 29 it is important that he prioritises his enjoyment of the game and being a bit part player at The Den would have been frustrating.

Millwall have grafted their way into a decent financial position in the Championship and may be looking to pay a transfer fee for an Afobe replacement, not only just re-allocating his wages.