Millwall manager Gary Rowett has suggested that the Lions will have to wait to assess whether Jake Cooper can continue his long run in the side against Blackburn Rovers on Tuesday. after he suffered an injury against Birmingham City.

Cooper completed the full ninety minutes in the Lions’ hard-fought goalless draw at Birmingham on Saturday, which saw the reliable defender stretch his run to 136 consecutive fixtures which he has started and completed for Millwall. The 25-year-old was instrumental in helping Rowett’s side record the seventh clean sheet of the campaign.

However, after the game it emerged that the defender had suffered a dislocated shoulder and played on for the last 15 minutes despite suffering with the pain of that injury. That could be a blow for the Lions who have only just seen Alex Pearce come back into the side.

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Speaking to the media following Millwall’s goalless draw with Birmingham, Rowett revealed that Cooper is set to be assessed in training on Monday to see if he can be able to feature against Blackburn in midweek after he played on through injury in the closing stages against Birmingham.

He said: “Coops played the last 15 minutes with a dislocated shoulder. His arm came out, shoulder came out, went back in and he just got on with it.

“And the last 15 minutes he’s heading balls out of the box, trying to attack things. That shows where we are.

“That’s why I can’t be too critical. I think the players have given me absolutely everything. While we want a little bit more, we’ve had to just keep patching up and going again.

“Wednesday will be a tough game, Blackburn are a side that can move the ball really well, open you up if you’re not at it.

“For us, we’ll look to see if there are ways to freshen it up, but it looks like we will be pretty limited.

“Pearcey [Alex Pearce] comes in for his first start in quite a while, I wanted to get him back in as our captain, our leader.

“We’ll have to wait and see Monday morning [on Cooper]. I try to not look too far ahead. We’ve had players fit for one game and the next game they’ve not been available due to little niggles.”

The verdict

Cooper’s potential absence would be a major blow for the Lions, with the defender a crucial part of their defence, and it will be hoped he can return to action as Millwall aim to try and prevent Blackburn and Adam Armstrong, in particular, adding to their goal tally so far this campaign.

The 25-year-old has been excellent so far this term for Rowett’s side helping them become one of the most difficult teams to beat in the league. Cooper has averaged an impressive 2.4 interceptions and 4.8 clearances per game for the Lions to help them record seven clean sheets in 14 matches (Sofascore).

Millwall do at least have Pearce back in action which would relieve some of the worries if Cooper is forced to miss out. However, Rowett will be hoping that he can once again call upon both of his main centre-back options as they look to end a run of five successive draws with a win.