Despite a difficult recent run, Millwall can still head into the summer with lots of positivity.

Gary Rowett's side put together an impressive run between February and the start of April but have come unstuck over the past few weeks – taking just one point from their last four games.

It's worth noting, however, that those four games came against four of the Championship's top six and that if they take six points from their last two games of the season – against struggling Bristol City and relegation-threatened Coventry City – they could finish as high as eighth.

Two top 10 finishes in two years would be an impressive feat for Rowett but what the last few weeks have highlighted is that his side still have a fair way to go if they want to take the next step and secure a play-off place next season.

A strong summer transfer window could help them close that gap and with that in mind, we've outlined what the Lions could look like when they line up for their first game in 2021/22 – assuming they play a 3-4-3 formation...

It would be a shock to see anyone other than Bartosz Bialkowski between the sticks for Millwall, with the Polish shot-stopper impressing again this season.

Only two Championship goalkeepers have kept more clean sheets than Bialkowski this term (17 in 44 games) and with his contract set to run until next summer, it's a position that the club don't need to worry about this summer.

The 33-year-old is a proven second-tier keeper and an experienced head, going into the 2021/22 season with him in goal is definitely a positive.

Who will be backing him up looks slightly less clear at this point.

It's been another hugely impressive season for Jake Cooper, with the centre-back ever-present when fit this term.

Millwall's resolve may be tested in the summer and they may need to stand firm to keep hold of the 26-year-old defender but with his current deal running until 2023, they should be in a strong position to do that.

Rowett suggested earlier this year that Cooper would not be sold unless "a whopping great bid" was made.

Assuming he stays at the club, the towering central defender will surely be one of the first names on the teamsheet at the start of the 2021/22 campaign.

If Millwall are keen to strengthen their backline ahead of the 2021/22 campaign, then returning for 22-year-old Ryan Porteous could be a move they make.

The Hibernian centre-back looks a defender with a very bright future and has been targetted by the south London club in the past.

Millwall saw a seven-figure bid rejected by Hibs in the January window but could well reignite their interest when the transfer market opens this summer.

Adding a new central defender would make a lot of sense, with Alex Pearce not getting any younger and Murray Wallace's current deal set to expire.

It will surely be Shaun Hutchinson taking the final place in Millwall's back three alongside Cooper and Porteous.

Up until the injury that looks set to rule him out for the rest of the current campaign, Hutchinson hadn't missed a single Championship game for the Lions in 2020/21, which is testament to how important he is both as a defender and a leader.

Assuming the 30-year-old, who often takes the captain's armband in the absence of Alex Pearce, recovers from his current injury issue in time, he'll be hoping he can play a key role again next season and hopefully help his side battle higher up the table.

While the 2020/21 campaign hasn't been Mahlon Romeo's best season for the club, the 25-year-old still looks likely to reprise his role at right wing-back assuming more cover is brought in for the backline.

Dan McNamara will likely keep him on his toes, having impressed since joining from St Johnstone in January, but Romeo may be just ahead of him in the pecking order.

If the Antigua and Barbuda international can recapture the partnership he's had with Jed Wallace on the right flank at points in the past, then Millwall fans may well see him back to his best.

You'd imagine that few players in the Millwall squad will be more excited by the prospect of fans returning to The Den than homegrown talent Billy Mitchell.

The 20-year-old is highly rated at the south London club, as his new long-term deal illustrates, and has begun to establish himself in the senior side over the past month or so.

Next season could be his chance to really flourish and with a full pre-season as part of the first team under his belt, Mitchell may well be one of the midfielders that Rowett trusts to start the first game of the season.

Ryan Woods appears to be a player that Rowett really trusts, having signed him for first Stoke City and then Millwall.

The midfielder's loan deal with the Lions is set to expire at the end of the season but he is out of contract with parent club Stoke as well this summer, which could mean he moves to The Den permanently.

Rowett has previously revealed that he was planning to open talks with the 27-year-old's representatives over such a move.

Woods has been a regular fixture in the Millwall side this term and if he returns to the club in the upcoming window, you feel he will likely slot in next to Mitchell for the season opener.

What a bit of business bringing Scott Malone to the club has proven.

The defender left The Den in 2015 but rejoined in the summer on a season-long loan from Derby County and has been excellent for the south London club.

Not only has Malone proven useful defensively but he's been an asset going forward as well, with only Jed Wallace scoring more than his five goals for the Lions this season.

The 30-year-old's loan deal and contract with the Rams expire in the summer, so you feel Millwall will be keen to sign him permanently then.

If they do, then he'll surely reprise his role on the left flank ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

He's not quite reached the heights he did last season but Jed Wallace has been Millwall's key attacking once again this term.

Along with Cooper, Wallace is one of the players that the Lions will be most desperate to keep hold of in the summer and there could well be interest from elsewhere as there has been in the past.

The 27-year-old's contract situation means they may well feel they need to at least consider offers made but assuming the south London club manage to keep hold of him, he looks set to play a key role once again next season.

Striker has been a problem position for Millwall this term and should undoubtedly be top of their list of priorities ahead of the summer window.

One player that they've already been linked with is Sunderland hitman Charlie Wyke, who has fired in 29 goals this season but will become a free agent if he doesn't agree new terms with the Black Cats.

According to Sky Sports' Keith Downie, the Lions are one of the sides keen to sign him on a free transfer and you can see why.

The physical target man would seem to fit their system perfectly and will be high on confidence on the back of an impressive campaign.

If he can adjust to the step up to the Championship, he could just be the final piece of the puzzle for Millwall.

The move to south London has proven an excellent one for Mason Bennett, who has looked a man with renewed confidence over the past 18 months.

That has translated into his on-field contributions – adding five goals and two assists this season while featuring in a string of different positions.

Should Wyke join, Rowett may well shift to a 3-5-3 formation and that would send Bennett out onto the left flank.

He's had a season and a half to settle, Millwall fans will be hoping that the 2021/22 campaign is the season that the 24-year-old can really kick on and become a key man.