Leeds United loanee Jamie Shackleton says he is targeting a place in the Championship play-offs with Millwall this term. The 22-year-old joined the Lions along with fellow Leeds teammate Charlie Cresswell on a season-long loan in the summer.
Millwall missed out on the top six by just six points last season. They made a strong start to the current campaign - collecting two wins from their first three league matches, before embarking on a disappointing run of three straight defeats. The Lions responded to their lapse in form as Shackleton played at right wingback in a 2-0 victory over Cardiff City at The Den in their last outing.
Shackleton is accustomed to playing in front of an electrifying crowd at Elland Road and believes the passion of the Millwall supporters was a major factor behind his move.
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The former England U20 international has played in each of Millwall's eight league games and although he insists that his primary aim is to get as many minutes is possible, Shackleton's ambition is to help lift Millwall into the play-offs.
"Leeds are very passionate fans and they get behind you at The Den and also make a noise when we’re away from home as well. That’s the type of clubs that most players should want to play for. Clubs where it means an awful lot to everybody involved," Shackleton observes.
"I’d say [my aim is] to play as many of these games as possible. We play a lot of Saturday and Tuesday games which is pretty intense so I just want to stay fit and be competitive.
"I’ve been playing games and we've we had a really good start to the season and picked up some good results. Then we had three games without a win but we turned that around the other week and we got another good result again [versus Cardiff].
"I know that Millwall finished just outside the play-offs last year so hopefully we can build off that. There’s no reason why we can’t go and maybe get a spot in there this year."
Millwall boss Gary Rowett's aforementioned tactical switch that saw Shackleton and fellow midfielder Callum Styles play as wingbacks helped Millwall arrest their slide down the table and end their three-match losing streak.
Shackleton has been accustomed to alternating between the right-back and central midfield positions at Leeds and he insists that he happy playing either role at Millwall too.
"I've said before when people ask me, it's not a position that I don't enjoying playing," Shackleton reveals. "I enjoy playing there just like I enjoy playing in centre midfield. It's not something that I look negatively on. I enjoy it and I feel like I can do a job for the team in that position as well."
The presence of fellow Leeds academy graduate Cresswell has also helped ease Shackleton's transition into life in South East London. Cresswell scored twice on his debut and added a third for the campaign in Millwall's last outing against Cardiff.
The pair have added both youthful exuberance and much-needed quality at The Den and Cresswell's signing has provided a familiar face in Shackleton's new surroundings.
"I’ve spent a fair bit of time with Cressy down here," Shackleton says. "He’s similar to me, he’s enjoying it and getting the experience and the game time that we’ve had. He’s managed to knock in a couple of goals with his head while he’s at it so he’s enjoying it as well."
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