Neil Harris confirms Millwall transfer decision after Josh Coburn setback | OneFootball

The Lions boss has confirmed his stance over a potential loan recall

Millwall manager Neil Harris has dismissed the possibility of recalling striker Tom Leahy amid the club's injury crisis.

The 20-year-old is currently out on loan with National League side Woking, and it seems he will not be returning any time soon.

It was a disappointing afternoon for Millwall on Saturday, as they were beaten 1-0 by Luton Town at The Den.

Their disappointment was further compounded when it was revealed that the injury which forced on-loan Middlesbrough striker Josh Coburn out of the game, has ruled him out for six to eight weeks.

As a result of that setback, Harris now finds himself rather short from options to choose from to lead his line.

Millwall have a striker injury crisis

Already this season, Millwall have lost Tom Bradshaw to a long-term knee injury, while new signing Mihailo Ivanovic is still unavailable due to a hamstring problem.

With Coburn now also out, that leaves Macaulay Langstaff as the club's only fit and available centre-forward option.

The 27-year-old, who joined from Notts County in the summer transfer window, is yet to score since making the move to The Den.

But despite that lack of options, it seems as though that will not impact the immediate future of Leahy.

When asked if Millwall could recall the 20-year-old from his loan spell with Woking in order to cope with his side's centre-forward injury crisis, Harris told The Southwark News:

"There’s no recall in the first 28 days for Tom Leahy. Tom needs to be playing regular first-team football.

"He’s not ready to play for Millwall Football Club in the Championship and he’s gone to the level because that’s where he’s at at the moment.

"With youngsters, it’s not just about thinking about the result on Saturday. There needs to be a long-term plan for the football club as well. Tom needs to develop and go through the stages."

Leahy came through the youth ranks at Millwall, and has made one senior appearance for the club, as a late substitute in the 4-3 defeat at Bristol City earlier this season.

Having made the temporary move to Woking earlier this month, he has so far made three appearances for the club, without scoring.

Currently, Woking sit 13th in the National League table, although they are just a point adrift of the play-off places.

Millwall meanwhile, have taken four points from their first five games of the Championship season, leaving them 18th in the early standings.

They are next in action on Saturday afternoon, when they make the short trip to Loftus Road to take on QPR.

A sensible approach for Neil Harris to take

It does feel as though Harris is doing the right thing by allowing Leahy to remain out on loan despite his side's injury problems at centre-forward.

As he says, the most important thing for Leahy at this moment in time is get regular football under his belt, which he has the opportunity to do at Woking.

By contrast, even with those injuries, it is unlikely he will do that if he returns to Millwall now, especially as players start to return to full fitness.

Of course, it is also worth noting that the 20-year-old is still at the early stages of his senior career, where he is relatively untested.

As a result, there is not even a guarantee he would be able to make an immediate in the first-team at Championship level, if he was to be recalled now.