MILLWALL manager Kenny Jackett has revealed the Lions were never close to bringing former striker Steve Morison back to The Den.

Morison will face the Lions at Elland Road for Leeds United after Neil Warnock snapped him up from Norwich on transfer deadline day as part of the deal which took Luciano Becchio to Carrow Road.

It had been rumoured prior to this Millwall were interested in getting Morison on loan but Jackett today suggested there was never really a realistic chance of that happening.

The Den boss said: “We followed it but in the end the sort of level of finance involved took him away from us.

“I follow a lot of players, I’ve followed George Saville for the last couple of seasons and I’ve got him in on loan today!

“We weren’t blind to Morison’s situation but were we ever close or serious about bringing him back here?

“The answer to that is no.”

Saturday’s visit to Elland Road is the start of a huge week for the Lions, which culminates with next Sunday’s home FA Cup tie with Blackburn.

Jackett said: “The next three games are really interesting for a club of our size.

“We’ve got Leeds, Wolves and then Blackburn in the quarter-final of the FA Cup – that is a fantastic week for us to look forward to.

“Leeds I feel have improved of late.

“Morison coming in is a good signing and he has formed a good partnership with Ross McCormack.

“The likes of Stephen Warnock, David Norris and Michael Tonge have just improved the side the side a little bit and they’ve got a bit stronger perhaps with more competition in their squad.

“Leeds will be one of the clubs who have their eye on a play-off place.

“I’ve seen Neil Warnock’s comments where he says probably the next few games are key for them.

“They are always great games up at Elland Road because it is a fantastic stadium with a terrific atmosphere.

“These big games are what we are here for and what we got into this division for and we are looking forward to it.”

But if the Lions are to get a result on Saturday, they will have to do it with little or no backing from travelling supporters after the police again imposed the voucher system for Lions fans attending the game, a decision criticised by the Millwall manager.

Jackett said: “I think it is a harsh decision because there have been many, many games over the years now between Millwall and Leeds where both sets of fans have been very well behaved, both in League One and the Championship together.

“I don’t think it is the club’s decision but West Yorkshire Police’s.

“I can only thank the Millwall supporters who will travel up for their perseverance and I’m sure they will make themselves heard.”

Millwall go into the game on the back of last Saturday’s welcome 2-1 success at Middlesbrough, a result which ended a five-game losing streak in the Championship.

What made the win even more remarkable was the fact it was achieved without making any substitutions.

Jackett admitted: “I was very tempted but I couldn’t quite see like-for-like on the bench.

“Once you go past the 90 minute mark quite often it can be counterproductive making a change because there are 30/45 seconds which are going to be added on.

“Most managers substitute their forwards for one reason or another during the course of a game.

“As a young player, Benik Afobe still had that burst of speed at the end where he broke into the box and should have had a penalty.

“The 11 who were out there did the job.”

New loan signing from Chelsea George Saville goes straight into the squad for Leeds, while Shane Lowry is available for selection again after serving a one-game suspension after being sent off in the Peterborough defeat on February 19.

Striker Rob Hulse is ruled out with a stomach injury, although Jackett is optimistic he will return for either the Wolves home game on Tuesday or the Blackburn cup tie.

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