Wayne Rooney drops claim on Millwall star Femi Azeez | OneFootball

One Millwall man has been attracting plenty of top-flight attention.

Millwall endured a night to forget in the Championship play-offs, and now they could pay the price of falling short in the summer transfer window.

The Lions finished the season in third, just one point behind Ipswich Town and 10 points above sixth-placed Hull City, who they faced in the semi-finals.

However, despite taking a goalless draw to The Den, Alex Neil's side suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat to the Tigers after Mohamed Belloumi's fine effort and Joe Gelhardt's strike, which should have been saved by Anthony Patterson, led them to victory.

One player who has been catching the eye at Millwall is right-midfielder Femi Azeez, and former Derby County and Plymouth Argyle boss Wayne Rooney has tipped him for big things.

Wayne Rooney tips Femi Azeez for Premier League football

Millwall may have enjoyed their best league finish for 15 years, but that will mean nothing to supporters as they reflect on a disappointing night in South East London.

One of the stories of the season was Femi Azeez, who bagged 11 goals and eight assists, a significant improvement on last term, while he was also named third in the supporters' vote for Player of the Season, behind Jake Cooper and Tristan Crama.

The 24-year-old was also included in the Championship Team of the Season, a testament to his impact at this level.

Now, the former Reading man has come in for high praise from pundit Rooney, who brought him up while speaking on The Overlap.

When asked by John Fendley which second-tier player he could see making an easy switch to the Premier League, he said, "I think Femi Azeez.

"He's a player I've watched, and I really like him. He's an intelligent football player, and I think to go and play in the Premier League, you need that intelligence to be able to find space to take the ball and be a match-winner.

"I think he's one player who's most suited to the Premier League."

What is the latest on Azeez's future?

When asked about his future in March, Azeez stated that his focus was solely on Millwall and trying to improve amid his club's hunt for promotion, but that may have since changed now that they will remain a Championship side.

There has been a string of Premier League interest in the winger, with a host of clubs eyeing his services, including Crystal Palace, Everton and Leeds United, amongst others.

Now that the Lions have missed out on promotion, the chances of the 24-year-old leaving The Den would have surely increased, but it also means that he may be allowed to depart for a reduced fee.

In early February, it was reported that Ipswich Town had a bid rejected by Millwall for Azeez that would have broken their club record sale of approximately £14million Palace paid for Romain Esse.

Top-flight clubs have often raided the Championship for its best talent, and there is every reason that will happen with Azeez, given his eye-catching statistics this campaign.

The Englishman ranks in the top two per cent of players in his position for several key attacking metrics, including chances created, expected assists (xA) and successful crosses, according to Futmob.

Not only that, but he has also demonstrated strong defensive capabilities, as he is ranked within the top nine per cent of right-midfielders in the division for defensive contributions, clearances and shots blocked.

These traits will make him even more appealing to top-tier clubs as they look more favourably on wide players who will put in the hard yards to defend, on top of their attacking work.

Azeez is certainly one to watch this summer, and if Rooney's words are anything to go by, then he could make the transition from Championship to Premier League seamlessly.