Theo has loved it at Millwall

Given that Theo Paphitis describes being Millwall chairman as "living in a goldfish bowl with an outer casing made of very fine egg shells" you might have thought he would be looking forward to standing down on Sunday. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

Paphitis is dreading the moment when he relinquishes control of the club he saved from bankruptcy eight years ago. "I'm not looking forward to it in the slightest," he said. "It's a decision I am struggling to come to terms with terribly."

Paphitis, the son of Greek immigrants, is justifiably proud of the transformation he has overseen. During his tenure debts of £10million have been brought under control and attendances have almost doubled, while the club have emerged from the depths of the old Second Division to become an established force in the Championship. On top of that, the club have enjoyed an inaugural European campaign and an FA Cup Final against Manchester United.

"I should not be at all disappointed but of course there is that disappointment - no Premiership," said Paphitis. "That's the only thing that niggles me. If there was one reason for not stepping down that would be it."

Yet back in April 1997 there were plenty of reasons for not taking over. Paphitis said: "People said to me, 'Millwall? You must be mad. You're a first-generation immigrant, they're going to hang you up from the floodlights'. It was the biggest nonsense of stereotyping I've ever heard because the fans have been tremendous to me.

"I think the vast majority of them appreciate what I've done. There will always be a very loud minority that have got views that don't fit modern day society - and they appear in every club - but we don't run Millwall football club for them. Millwall are run for the true supporters of the club."

That much was evident when Paphitis introduced a controversial membership scheme after violence broke out following Millwall's defeat to Birmingham in the play-off semi-finals three years ago.

"The problems outside the ground after the game took a big piece out of me," said Paphitis, who admits he came close to quitting. "When a bit of china is broken you can stick it together again but you still see the marks, and those marks are still there. That was definitely my lowest point. But the level of problems we've had in the last few years has been zilch and I'm very proud of that."

Though not as proud as he was when the final whistle blew at Old Trafford in the FA Cup semi-final last year, confirming victory over Sunderland. "That has to be the biggest highlight ever," said Paphitis.

It was, though, an occasion which fans hoped would provide the impetus to launch a serious bid for promotion this season. That has failed to materialise, though Paphitis denied the club have been too prudent under his tenure.

"My investment in Millwall is a few million, it doesn't seem a lot but it would if I showed you what you could spend with it," said Paphitis. "We have had some great times, we have achieved a hell of a lot, maybe I should have put £50m in - but I think my missus would have left me and my kids would have had me sectioned!"

Paphitis, who will remain on the board at Millwall, admits that under Jeff Burnige, his successor, the club "won't be able to afford the payroll at the moment". The new chairman will also be faced with the immediate problem of outlining whether Dennis Wise has a future as manager. "I don't think that will be a issue," said Paphitis, perhaps tellingly.

But what about Paphitis's presence on the backbenches - will that not be an issue for Burnige? "If I was Jeff I would block my number on his phone," said Paphitis, laughing. "I'll be that bloke whinging and moaning at him all the time. But no, I do know how to behave, exchairman should enjoy the time that they've had and the present chairman should be allowed to get on with his job."

Paphitis has one piece of unfinished business at Millwall. "I have got to do the naked run around London and it will happen in the summer," said Paphitis, referring to the promise he made if Millwall qualified for Europe. "But the weather has to get warmer first - I don't want to embarrass myself totally!"

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in