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Ex-Millwall striker Tony Cascarino critical of Ian Holloway's selection policy

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 09:  Ian Holloway poses for a picture during a press conference to announce him as the new Millwall manager at The Den on January
Image: Ian Holloway: Sacked by Millwall after 14 months in charge

Former Millwall striker Tony Cascarino believes his old side had little choice but to part ways with Ian Holloway who was sacked by the club on Tuesday.

Millwall have lost their last four games, leaving them one from bottom in the Championship, eight points adrift of safety.

Holloway won just 14 matches out of 62 during his 14 months at the club and Cascarino, who played 105 games for the Lions, believes a series of questionable decisions cost the 51-year-old his job.

“I think it was inevitable,” Cascarino told The Morning View on Sky Sports News HQ, when asked if he was surprised by Holloway’s departure.

“If you look at the Championship, Steve Evans is the only manager in the bottom half of the table who has kept his job, at Rotherham.

“Ian’s had a horrendous run. October 25 (1-0 against Cardiff) was the last home victory. He’s tried many different formations, 4-5-1, 4-4-2, 4-3-3, conceded goals at an alarming rate, changed personnel within that group and still lost games.

“I have to say Ian made a lot of mistakes. I never like it when I see managers make lots of changes and change formations so regularly. If you change things as a manager you’ve got to get them right. You’re paid to make changes that improve the team.”

Former Crystal Palace and Republic of Ireland striker Clinton Morrison was also a guest on The Morning View and he questioned the wisdom of Holloway’s squad rotation policy.

“Another thing with Holloway is that he’s used 37 players,” Morrison said. "You need a settled team. I think if you keep chopping and changing every week then you can’t get settled. You need to build up a run of games.”

Cascarino, who went to play for Aston Villa, Celtic, Chelsea and Marseille after leaving Millwall, does not think Holloway had the capacity to reverse the slide at the Den.

“They’ve got a young kid called Sid Nelson,” he said. “He’d made three appearances at the club and became captain of a side that was struggling. I think he’s only made a total of five appearances since.

“One thing that was pretty clear was that Ian couldn’t turn it around even though they were on the slide and parachuting so fast. There wasn’t a performance where you thought they were back on the right track.”

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