Millwall midfielder Ben Thompson can’t wait to play against Leeds at Elland Road.

The 21-year-old has revealed it is the fixture he is most excited about in the upcoming Championship campaign.

Millwall travel to Leeds on January 20, and Thompson knows the rivalry well from growing up as a Lions fan.

He told News Shopper: “I’m looking forward to Leeds away, we’re going to have some tough fixtures and they’re going to be feisty and we’ll thrive under it.

“I’ve been to Leeds games before, I can’t remember ever going to Elland Road so that’s why I’m looking forward to it. Steve [Morison] and Tony [Craig] have said there’s a great atmosphere there - and when it gets rocking, it’s unbelievable.

“It’s just a rivalry. It’s just one of those things. Our fans are very passionate and I’m not really sure what to say about it.”

Thompson made 47 appearances last season as Millwall won promotion to the Championship via the play-offs.

He lost his place in the starting eleven towards the end of the campaign, and is determined to force his way back into Neil Harris’ team.

Championship-experienced central midfielders George Saville and Ryan Tunnicliffe joined the club this summer, and it could make it even harder for the Millwall academy graduate to regain his spot.

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Thompson said: “It’s football, that’s what happens. We’re going to have competition in every single position.

“It’s healthy competition. It’s going to make me play and train even harder. Hopefully I can get back in the side and do my thing.”

Bookmakers have Millwall as one of the favourites to make an instant return to League One.

Other Championship clubs have splashed the cash this summer, with Middlesbrough spending over £25m.

Millwall have not broke the bank, but have spent wisely on quality additions such as James Meredith, Conor McLaughlin, Jake Cooper and Tom Elliott.

Thompson added: “We’ve got to prove them [the bookmakers] wrong, haven't we? We’ve got to do the business on the pitch and obviously the aim is to stay up and I don’t see why we can’t do that.

“We’re playing against bigger teams, better players and it’s going to be tough. I think we’ve got to approach every game with the same mindset. I don't think we’ll struggle too much. As long as we stick to what we’re good at and stick to our game plan, we should be fine.

“We’re not going to look at the opposition and think ‘they’re worth 10 times more than me so they should be beating us’.

“It’s 11 players vs 11 players on the pitch and that’s all that matters.”