TalkSPORT pundit tips Millwall boss Alex Neil to land newly-available manager job | OneFootball

Darren Bent has named his pick to become the next Scotland men's national team head coach

Millwall narrowly missed out on promotion to the Premier League last season as they finished third in the table.

The Lions have not competed in the top flight of English football since 1990, but were just one point away from a top two finish in the Championship.

Alex Neil’s side earned a play-off place at this level for the first time since 2004, but were unable to reach the final after a 2-0 loss to Hull City.

The south London outfit will now be hoping for a positive summer and pre-season in order to come back stronger for another promotion fight in 2027.

The 45-year-old has earned a lot of plaudits for overseeing the club’s third-place finish last season.

Neil has been in charge of Millwall since December 2024, and his side have won 39 of their 78 games since then.

Alex Neil tipped for Scotland manager role after Millwall success

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Darren Bent has claimed that Alex Neil would be a great appointment to take over the Scotland men’s national team following Steve Clarke’s resignation.

He believes the Millwall boss would be the right profile to take over the team, although the former forward is uncertain whether Neil would be willing to leave the Championship side at this time.

"The job he’s done at Millwall, you look at him last year with Millwall, limited budget, hardly anything, gets them to the play-offs," said Bent, via talkSPORT.

"Obviously, they lost in the play-offs but the job he did at Millwall was incredible, and I know obviously he wouldn’t want to leave Millwall, but to me that makes sense.

"Right profile, I think he’s a good manager, I think he’s a good coach as well.

"It does feel kind of harsh on Steve Clarke, but getting them to a World Cup, could they have got out the group? Could they have done a bit more? Probably because that’s the thing, I don’t think they played well enough in those games."

Neil has never worked in international management before, and it remains unclear whether he would be willing to leave Millwall for Scotland.

The Lions are preparing for the new campaign, which will get underway on August 15 with a trip to face Bristol City.

How Millwall fans feel about Alex Neil possibly leaving for Scotland

There have been mixed reactions to the possibility of Neil leaving Millwall for Scotland in the aftermath of Clarke’s resignation.

Some have adamantly claimed that he won’t be going anywhere, with the London outfit targeting another promotion push.

However, others have expressed their concerns about his potential exit, claiming that the club can’t let him leave.

And ultimately, they are unsurprised by him being mentioned in the conversation due to the excellent work he’s done since taking over at The Den.

Scotland reached the World Cup this summer under Clarke, but were eliminated from the group stages as one of the four worst third place teams.

The 62-year-old has already been linked with the Burnley vacancy, and perhaps he will come up against Neil later this season if he does become the Clarets’ new head coach.

Alex Neil exit would be a real blow for Millwall

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Neil would be an interesting option for Scotland, and would bring a fresh change of pace after seven years under Clarke.

It would be a massive blow for Millwall to lose him, but it’s an exciting opportunity and one that could entice the 45-year-old.

It’s a major factor as well that Scotland will be one of the hosts, alongside England, Wales and Ireland, for Euro 2028.

Not only will this give Scotland a great opportunity to be at a major tournament, but being in charge for a home game at the European Championship would be a huge moment in any coach’s career, so it’s not out of the question that Neil could be interested.