Millwall are preparing for another season in the Championship after missing out on promotion to the Premier League.

The Lions finished third in the table, one point behind second-place Ipswich Town, before losing 2-0 to Hull City in the play-off semi-finals.

The London club will now need to rebuild during the summer in order to return stronger and compete for promotion in the next season.

The summer transfer window will also present Alex Neil with the opportunity to change and potentially improve his squad.

Millwall had not participated in the top flight since 1990, and this was their first top six finish in the Championship since 2002.

It might be a busy few months ahead, as the club must also keep hold of their top talents after players such as Femi Azeez received widespread praise for his role in the team’s promotion campaign.

Millwall makes Thierno Ballo transfer decision.

According to NewsAtDen, Millwall failed to secure a permanent move for Thierno Ballo.

After joining on loan last year, the Lions reportedly agreed to pay £3 million to bring him to the Den permanently.

The winger scored one goal and five assists in 31 league appearances for Neil’s team, but he is not expected to return next season.

It is understood that the club hit a stumbling block over the £500,000 loan fee paid to get him from Wolfsberger last summer.

Millwall had hoped that this cash would be included in the £3 million price required to make the trade permanent, but that was not the case.

While the Lions were eager to keep the 24-year-old, and the player was content to stay at the Den, the two sides were unable to reach an agreement on the terms of the deal.

The Championship club is now apparently looking for other prospects to strengthen their offensive options for next season.

Ballo has only one year left on his Wolfsberger deal, and it is unclear whether he will stay with the Austrian club or make a permanent move abroad.

Thierno Ballo’s departure is a blow for Alex Neil.

There’s no doubt Neil wants to keep this squad together after they did so well this season, so losing Ballo is a setback.

The winger provided plenty of attacking threat while on loan, and a fee of approximately £3 million may have been justified given how essential he was to their promotion campaign.

Millwall will now have to focus on other targets, and there is no guarantee that any successor will perform as well as the 24-year-old.

Given Ballo’s success on loan, it wouldn’t be surprising if another Championship club decided to take advantage of this position, especially as he has only one year left on his deal and is likely to be available this summer as a result.