Japhet Tanganga fired in-form Millwall to a 1-0 win over Leeds to end the Whites’ unbeaten record on the road.
Tanganga, the former Tottenham defender who was given his Premier League debut by Jose Mourinho nearly five years ago, struck the only goal to deal promotion favourites Leeds just their second defeat of the season.
Having fallen out of favour at Spurs, Tanganga swapped north London for south London in January and now has designs on returning to the top flight with the Lions, the Championship’s surprise package.
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Japhet Tanganga scores the winner for Millwall against Leeds by volleying home from close range
It was a fourth consecutive 1-0 win for Millwall, a scoreline which used to be synonymous with the other half of north London, and which underlines the job Neil Harris is doing in his latest spell in charge at The Den.
Since Harris took over in February, Millwall have taken more points than any other team in the Championship – with this victory seeing them overtake Leeds’ tally from the same period.
They are now up to fifth, having been fourth from bottom when they kicked off at home to Plymouth just two weeks ago.
Millwall’s first chance fell to their captain, Jake Cooper, who scored the winner against Burnley on Sunday.
Ryan Leonard’s free-kick from the right was met by centre-half Cooper but his header was straight at Leeds keeper Illan Meslier.
Lively Lions winger Romain Esse then embarked on a mazy run into the area but he was eventually crowded out.
As for Leeds, Lions keeper Lukas Jensen dealt with long-range efforts from Brenden Aaronson and Joel Piroe while Joe Rodon glanced a header wide from a corner.
But both teams largely cancelled each other out in the first half, until six minutes before the interval when Leonard swung over another free-kick.
This time Cooper headed the ball back across goal and Tanganga was on hand to guide a sweet, sidefooted volley beyond Meslier from 10 yards.
The Lions had had less than 25 per cent possession, but they had hit Leeds with a classic sucker punch.
Leeds had a golden chance to equalise a minute into the second half when Aaronson crossed to the unmarked Wilfried Gnonto, but he planted his header wide.
Piroe then had the ball in the net from a Dan James cross only to be flagged for offside.
Leeds boss Daniel Farke sent on fit-again striker Patrick Bamford in search of an equaliser but Millwall held firm, and it was the hosts who almost grabbed another goal late on when Cooper’s header was deflected onto the far post.
The managers
Millwall’s Neil Harris:
“They are the best team we’ve seen this season. It’s a special win for us. A classic Den performance, backs to the wall. But we were structured out of possession and the defensive discipline was mega.
“It’s great for me when managers say ‘you’re so hard to play against’. We are underdogs in a lot of games, that’s why we’re entitled to celebrate wins like tonight.
“Other teams are more hardened to being near the top than us. We know where we’re at. We know what we are.
“I can’t be any prouder of the team but we won’t settle for that. We want to keep upsetting teams, keep out-performing teams, and stay in the top reaches of this division.”
Leeds’ Daniel Farke:
“First of all you have to say congratulations to Millwall for excellent defending and excellent efficiency.
“They were more effective than us with their chances. You have to accept a loss sometimes.
“Football is sometimes like this. It can be the most unfair sport in the world. One goal is quite often decisive, the team concentrating on defending and with one chance can win.
“So I’m not annoyed at all. We created more chances in and around their box than the last four away teams here.
“The last team to win the title, Leicester, lost 11 games. It’s what happens in this league. It’s no major concern for me.”
