KENNY Jackett admits he was surprised Cardiff were able to pull off the signing of Craig Bellamy from Manchester City this summer.

Bellamy joined the Bluebirds on a season-long loan deal on August and although he has missed their last three games through injury, the Welsh international striker is fit and available to take on Jackett’s Millwall side on Saturday.

The Lions boss, himself a former Wales star in his playing days, is a big fan of Bellamy and believes his decision to step down from the Premiership is the Championship’s gain.

Jackett said: “Cardiff are one of the favourites for promotion and they’ve strengthened last year’s very good squad when they were play-off finalists.

“They’ve added Andrew Keogh and Craig Bellamy, so they have a very good squad and a very good side.

“I was surprised when they signed Craig Bellamy but it is good for the Championship in terms of the profile and attendances.

“The bigger and better this league is, the more it reflects on us and it is a good effort for Millwall to try and compete in it.

“We wanted the opportunity of playing in this division and a game like this is a fantastic opportunity and definitely one to look forward to.”

Bellamy will be keen to add to Millwall’s defensive woes after a torrid week for the Lions back four saw them ship six goals at home to Watford and then concede another two against Ipswich in the Carling Cup on Tuesday.

Jackett appreciates how quickly fortunes can change in football after Millwall’s impressive start to the season was ended so spectacularly by Watford, but even he admits his surprise at what has happened.

“I definitely didn’t expect it but football is a leveller and it can hit you with different things,” he said.

“The players from the last couple of games now have to work hard going forward to try and get their confidence back.

“Taking Ipswich as an example, we started brightly, conceded a goal against the run of play and then lost a little bit of confidence.

“We’ve got to work very hard getting it back and keeping that confidence.

“It is early in the season and we’ve got to work hard to overcome what has happened.”

Jackett added: “There is no set formula to raise confidence because you have to earn confidence through hard work, it isn’t something you can wait to come along or hope for.

“It is about doing the basics on the football pitch and sticking to the basics which can help you get a foothold in the game.

“If you get a foothold in the game, you can build your confidence from there.

“We aren’t inexperienced as a group or too young, although you can look through our squad and say we are inexperienced at Championship level because there aren’t many who have played in this division.

“But that is ok because we wanted this opportunity to try and prove ourselves and compete at this level.

“Nobody said it was going to be easy and there are a lot of people working hard now to make that transition and to play in the Championship.”

Jimmy Abdou is expected to return for Millwall for Saturday’s trip to Wales after missing Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat against Ipswich with an ankle injury.