"Are Millwall the right team?" - Lincoln City: Michael Skubala link dismissed as "paper talk" | OneFootball

FLW's Lincoln City fan pundit has outlined his thoughts on the talk that Millwall are admirers of Michael Skubala.

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...

Lincoln City boss Michael Skubala has Championship admirers, which includes Millwall after Neil Harris resigned this week.

The Mirror are reporting that Millwall are keen on Steven Schumacher and Matt Bloomfield, while both Dave Challinor and Skubala are managers that they think highly of as well.

The 42-year-old is in his first full-time managerial role, having been an assistant and caretaker at Leeds United after managing their U-21 and development sides.

Skubala has been in his role for 13 months now, having just missed out on the play-offs with Lincoln at the end of the 2023/24 campaign.

The verdict on Michael Skubala links to Millwall to replace Neil Harris

FLW's Lincoln City fan pundit Gary Hutchinson was asked for his thoughts on the link to Millwall, whether he believes it is a good fit, and if he could see Skubala being tempted.

He said: "In reference to Michael Skubala, I'll be honest that I think it's just newspaper talk.

"He'd be a good fit for any Championship side in a year or two. He's not done a full season from start to finish yet, and I think it's important for a manager at this level to have that sort of time.

"Otherwise, you sort of find yourself on a treadmill, like a Des Buckingham, where you do six months here and six months there, and it's just not good enough.

"You've always got to be wary of stepping up as well. You look at Steven Schumacher and the likes of Danny Cowley when he stepped up, and then Paul Hurst a few years ago.

"You can be that next big thing in League One, but then making that step into the Championship is a big leap, and you have to pick your team right.

"With that in mind, are Millwall the right team for Skubala? Indeed, are they right club for any manager in League One looking to make that step up? I don't think they are.

"Because Neil Harris overachieved with them, and I think they have a decent squad, but they don't expect to be finishing 10th in the Championship. They don't have the 10th best team in the Championship.

"Therefore, it is expected struggle. So, how do you make your name when you're expected to struggle? You don't unless you massively overachieve, and then that hypes you up and creates a lot of hype and places a lot of expectation on your shoulders as well.

"I think he would be a good fit for almost any Championship team. His coaching methods are solid, even if we are going through a bit of a blip at the moment that he has got to manage through.

"But it's like anybody in any career, where you have to prove yourself at the level below before you make that step up.

"The question, therefore, is has Skubala proved himself as the manager of Lincoln City at the moment?

"My honest answer to that? Probably not, because he hasn't had a full season working with these players.

"He did really well with us last season. I think he is overachieving this season. People will disagree, but we are ninth in the table and we may be on a bad run at the moment, but I think we have overachieved.

"I don't think he will be tempted. He is process driven and will want to see this through."

Skubala's Lincoln City project

Lincoln have picked up from where they left off in the third tier, after being one of the most in-form sides towards the back end of last season, only losing twice in their last 20 games in all competitions.

Only Wycombe Wanderers have won more points in the third tier since Skubala was appointed as manager in November of last year, which puts them in a strong position in the league table, despite a few dips of late.

They know what a shrewd signing or two in January could do in leaving them very well-placed to sustain a play-off push. Skubala will be thrilled with his time at the Imps so far, and should want to see that through until the summer.