Millwall manager Joe Edwards said his team didn't do the basics or execute the game plan in their 3-1 defeat at Ipswich Town last night.

First half goals from Conor Chaplin, Massimo Luongo and Nathan Broadhead effectively wrapped the game up by half-time as the Blues racked up their eighth home league win of season to move to within one point of Championship leaders Leicester.  

Millwall, meanwhile, slip to 19th with this result coming hot on the heels of a 3-0 home loss to Coventry.

"Beaten by a very good side, we’ll give them that," said Edwards, the former Chelsea, Everton and England U20 coach who took on his first senior management job at The Den last month.

"I can accept when you lose to sides that are in the form that they’re in at the moment that can be as clinical as they are and continue to be around the goal. I can accept losing.

"But the manner of it is the issue. We didn’t get going from the off. The basics of the game, we were second to everything, a yard or two off everything.

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“They’re bright, they’ve got pace in their team, but we were well aware of that. Everything they’ve done to us tonight is not something we haven’t seen this season from Ipswich, they’re consistently doing it well.

“We came with a plan and were well prepared to do it and we simply didn’t execute it. We weren’t good with any of the real basics of the game.

“They were, as well as showing high levels of quality, which we really lacked. We were sloppy and the game was over at half-time, really.”

Asked if he was able to take more positives from the second half, during which a late consolation goal was scored, Edwards replied: “Very slightly. For someone like Kevin Nisbet to come on, I’m sure he’s been desperate to start, so when a striker comes on and gets a goal, hopefully that will give him some belief.

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“In terms of the attitude and the body language, that kind of stuff, that began to really disappoint me after their first goal in the first half.

“There was probably a slight improvement on that in the second half and then we made some changes to keep the energy levels up, people like Billy Mitchell came on, I’ve been wanted to see more of Billy.

“But at the same time, I’m not going to get too carried away with the scoreline of the second half because we know what a team’s able to do when they get 3-0 ahead, they’re able to approach the game differently themselves.

“We need to focus on what that first half was and how we can avoid that happening again for us.”