Neil Redfearn post Charlton Athletic...
Rotherham United boss Neil Redfearn admitted that his side’s performance was out of character as they fell to a 4-1 defeat to Charlton Athletic at AESSEAL New York Stadium.The Millers were condemned to defeat by a brace from Simon Makienok added to strikes from Igor Vetokele and Ademola Lookman, despite a goal from Chris Burke on his home debut.
The Rotherham United boss admitted that his team turned in a nervous display which saw them beaten on home turf but credited the Addicks for their showing in South Yorkshire.
“I thought we were poor today and we looked nervy first half,” Redfearn explained.
“I can’t put my finger on that as we’ve been playing well at home. The performance was very unlike us.
“I have to give credit to Charlton; I thought they were really good. But, again, if we play like we can play at home, then this result doesn’t happen.”
Following wins against Hull City and Bolton Wanderers in recent outings on home soil, Redfearn was unsure what lead to the defeat against Jose Riga’s side but insists that the result will pale into insignificance if they can return to winning ways next weekend in the Sky Bet Championship.
“I don’t know if it was the magnitude of the game and what it meant but there are obviously still a lot of games and points to play for,” he added.
“In the greater scheme of things, if we go on a run, then the relevance of it is what it is.
“It was one of the games where the expectation was there, because we’ve raised the bar so high in regards to the recent home performances. Everybody just expected us to roll Charlton over three or four nil.
“We know football is not like that, it’s not a given and when they went in front it gave them confidence. We came back into a bit when we equalised. But for the whole game we were just too open.”
The Millers boss continued to add that defeat against Charlton marks a glitch in their campaign but was disappointed to have suffered defeat in front of a healthy crowd at AESSEAL New York Stadium.
“At the end of the day, these lads have performed really well for six weeks, it’s a blip and I don’t think we can expect to beat anybody.”
“It’s disappointing because we had a good crowd in today, we filled the stadium, and you want to play well and you want to win."