Sheffield United extended their unbeaten Championship run to 11 games to with a comfortable 2-0 win at Cardiff, to stay three points clear on a day when all of the division’s top four sides recorded victories.
The former Bluebird Kieffer Moore struck twice in the second half. He has made a habit of scoring at the Cardiff City Stadium, having previously netted for the hosts, Wales and Ipswich last season.
Leeds kept up the pressure on United by cruising to a 4-0 win over struggling Oxford. Daniel Farke’s side cut loose with three second-half goals from Jayden Bogle, Brenden Aaronson and Manor Solomon after Dan James had opened the scoring to make it nine straight league wins at Elland Road. The heavy defeat meant Oxford, who sacked Des Buckingham last week and have still to win away, dropped into the relegation zone. They were watched from the stands by Buckingham’s successor, Gary Rowett, who will take charge against Cardiff on Boxing Day.
Jaidon Anthony and Josh Brownhill ensured Burnley started a crucial phase of their promotion bid with a 2-1 win over in-form Watford at Turf Moor. A defence that has now conceded just nine times in the first 22 games of the Championship season came under late pressure but still helped maintain Scott Parker’s bid for automatic promotion. And, although a Kwadwo Baah goal provided late concern for the Burnley manager, a run of just one defeat from their last 19 league games certainly suggests they may be capable of a quick return to the Premier League.
Jobe Bellingham, meanwhile, fired Sunderland to a hard-fought 2-1 comeback win over 10-man Norwich. .
Mihailo Ivanovic headed in a stoppage-time winner for Millwall as they recorded a much-needed 1-0 victory over high-flyers Blackburn. Under the caretaker charge of David Livermore, this was the Lions’ first win in seven games and ended a run of three matches without scoring, all under their former manager, Neil Harris. Blackburn had come to the Den on a run of six straight victories that had moved them into the playoff places and had not conceded in five games, but returned to Lancashire empty-handed after a disappointing display.
Plymouth led three times but will sit bottom over Christmas after having to settle for a 3-3 draw with Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough in a thriller at Home Park. Wayne Rooney’s side, who slipped to the bottom before kick-off as a result of Hull’s lunchtime victory, belied their lowly position to score through Lewis Gibson, Darko Gyabi and Mustapha Bundu but Boro replied through Jonny Howson, Hayden Hackney and Emmanuel Latte Lath. The point was not enough to see the Pilgrims climb off the bottom as they sit equal on 18 points with Cardiff and Oxford, but have an inferior goal difference.
Goals from Josh Windass and Callum Paterson after Di’Shon Bernard saw red gave Sheffield Wednesday a solid 2-0 victory over Stoke at Hillsborough. James Beadle also saved a Stoke penalty. Wednesday manager Danny Rohl praised how his side adjusted to going down to ten men, saying: “I’m very happy for my team. Thirty-two points after 22 games is not so bad and we’re just two points off the playoffs. We’re looking up and who knows? Maybe we can do something here.”
Rubén Sellés challenged his new players to “push forward” after Hull ended a 13-match winless run with a 2-1 victory at home to Swansea. The substitute Mason Burstow brought much-needed relief to home fans with a fine winner after 80 minutes. Sellés said: “We were clear in what we wanted, and we minimised our opponents. It was a powerful feeling at full-time. The club, the fans, the players and the staff have been looking for this feeling for long enough.”
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Portsmouth’s head coach, John Mousinho, hailed Callum Lang for his remarkable four-goal haul in a 4-1 victory over Coventry – making him the first Pompey player since Yakubu in 2004 to hit a quadruple. Mousinho said: “My only disappointment is that he didn’t score more. It was really pleasing and he should be pushing for more and more. He put himself in the right positions and when he got the chances he finished them.”
Jimmy Dunne scored an 89th-minute winner as QPR came from behind to beat Preston 2-1 and extend their unbeaten run in the league to seven matches. Milutin Osmajic took advantage of Steve Cook tumbling to the ground injured and put the visitors ahead after 21 minutes. But Rangers overcame that setback and Rayan Kolli’s third goal in his past four appearances hauled them level.
Preston, themselves unbeaten in their previous six games, were reduced to 10 men with seven minutes left when Liam Lindsay picked up a second yellow card for a challenge on Kieran Morgan. And the hosts took advantage, with the defender Dunne heading in Ilias Chair’s cross at the far post.
