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Review of Championship Matchday 34

last updated Monday 26th February 2018, 10:35 AM


Championship Matchday 34 Review

Championship Results - MatchDay 34
KO Home   Away TV
Friday 23rd February 2018
19:45 Hull 1-0 Sheff Utd Sky
Saturday 24th February 2018
15:000 Birmingham 0-2 Barnsley
15:00 Burton 0-1 Millwall
15:00 Leeds 1-0 Brentford
15:00 Norwich 0-0 Bolton
15:00 Preston 0-1 Ipswich
15:00 QPR 2-5 N. Forest
15:00 Reading 3-3 Derby
15:00 Sheff Wed 2-4 Aston Villa
15:00 Sunderland 3-3 Middlesbrough
17:30 Fulham 2-0 Wolves Sky
Sunday 25th February 2018
16:30 Cardiff 1-0 Bristol C  
 
League Table



On Saturday Wolves missed the chance to extend their lead at the top of the Championship after suffering a crushing 2-0 defeat by promotion-chasing Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Goals from Ryan Sessegnon and Aleksandar Mitrovic took the Cottagers to within five points of the automatic-promotion spots.

Wolves are now without a win in three matches, having drawn their previous two, but they are still nine points ahead of second-placed Cardiff.

In the only match on Sunday Kenneth Zohore snatched a late winner to earn Cardiff a 1-0 victory over Bristol City.

The Danish forward came off the bench to score after 82 minutes and earn the Bluebirds a valuable three points in the race to reach the Premier League.

Cardiff remain second in the table with 67 points four clear of second placed Aston Villa and eight points above inform Fulham.

Aston Villa ramped up the pressure on Cardiff with a 4-2 comeback victory at Sheffield Wednesday.

Villa were trailing at half-time to goals from Sean Clare and Lucas Joao either side of Lewis Grabban's leveller. But Glenn Whelan's 67th-minute equaliser was added to late on by Conor Hourihane and Robert Snodgrass, who scored from the penalty spot, to give Villa the win.

Fourth-placed Derby drew 3-3 at Reading after Jon Dadi Bodvarsson netted a late equaliser for the hosts.

Despite Kasey Palmer firing Derby into an early lead, Reading went ahead through goals from Liam Kelly and Mo Barrow. County responded either side of half-time through Richard Keogh and Tom Lawrence, only for Bodvarsson to grab an equaliser 10 minutes from time before Chris Baird was sent off for the visitors.

Callum McManaman denied Middlesbrough the chance to leapfrog Bristol City into sixth place as Sunderland drew an ill-tempered thriller 3-3 at the Stadium of Light.

Relegation-threatened Sunderland led 1-0 at half-time after an opening 45 minutes which saw Joel Asoro score before Jake Clarke-Salter and Adama Traore were sent off to leave the contest 10-a-side. First-half substitute Jonny Williams levelled for Sunderland after Patrick Bamford and a Grant Leadbitter penalty put Boro ahead, but Bamford put Boro ahead in the 68th minute.

That was until McManaman netted the equaliser in the sixth minute of stoppage time. Sunderland remain rooted to the bottom of the table, four points adrift of safety, while fellow strugglers Birmingham and Burton also lost.

In a bottom of the table battle Oli McBurnie scored twice and missed a penalty as Barnsley moved out of the drop zone with a 2-0 victory at Birmingham leapfrogging Birmingham as they went.

Ben Marshall's second-half goal condemned relegation zone Burton to a 1-0 defeat at home to Millwall which put Millwall just six points off the playoffs.

Mustapha Carayol netted the winner as Preston's play-off push stuttered with a 1-0 defeat to Ipswich at Deepdale.

Liam Cooper's first-half header gave Leeds a 1-0 home win over Brentford, earning Paul Heckingbottom his first victory as head coach, while Norwich and Bolton drew 0-0 at Carrow Road.

Lee Tomlin netted twice as Nottingham Forest slaughtered QPR 5-2 at Loftus Road. Joe Lolley, Matty Cash and Ben Brereton also scored for the visitors, meaning goals from Massimo Luongo and Matt Smith were nothing more than consolations for QPR.

Friday 23rd February 2018

19:45 Hull 1-0 Sheff Utd Sky

Hull City moved three points clear of the Championship relegation zone with a vital win over Sheffield United.

The game was briefly halted in a largely uneventful first half when home fans threw sponge balls on to the pitch in protest against the club's owners.

Nouha Dicko gave the hosts the lead with a fine finish after a neat ball from Jackson Irvine.

The Blades looked for an equaliser but home goalkeeper Allan McGregor was never really tested.

Defeat means Chris Wilder's side missed the chance to climb above Bristol City and back into the play-off places, while Hull climb above Birmingham City to 20th in the table.

Saturday 24th February 2018

15:000 Birmingham 0-2 Barnsley

Birmingham dropped back into the bottom three of the Championship as Oli McBurnie's double gave Barnsley only their second win in 19 games.

The on-loan striker volleyed the visitors in front at St Andrew's, but then had a penalty saved by David Stockdale after a foul by Marc Roberts.

McBurnie finally doubled the lead from close range after Stockdale was unable to hold Kieffer Moore's header.

Blues had chances of their own but went scoreless for the fourth game in a row.

They slipped two places to 23rd in the table, while Barnsley's first victory under new head coach Jose Morais saw them climb to 21st.

15:00 Burton 0-1 Millwall

Millwall climbed to 12th in the Championship thanks to Ben Marshall's second-half goal against struggling Burton Albion.

Burton had the better of the first half, with Lucas Akins shooting over and Darren Bent missing two good chances - notably when he blazed wide after running through.

Hope Akpan also headed wide before Millwall improved after the interval.

And Marshall earned victory when he bundled the ball in from close range.

Burton, who drop to second from bottom after Barnsley won at Birmingham, threatened to grab a point late on.

But both Lloyd Dyer and Tom Naylor were off target as opportunities came their way.

15:00 Leeds 1-0 Brentford

Leeds United ended their 10-match winless run with victory over Brentford to boost their play-off hopes.

Liam Cooper headed the hosts into the lead from Ezgjan Alioski's free-kick.

Pierre-Michel Lasogga nearly scored a second when his shot beat goalkeeper Dan Bentley but Ryan Woods cleared off the line.

Bees defender John Egan had forced a fine save from home keeper Felix Wiedwald before Cooper's goal but the visitors rarely threatened thereafter.

It was Leeds' first win under Paul Heckingbottom, their previous success having come at Burton on Boxing Day under previous head coach Thomas Christiansen.

15:00 Norwich 0-0 Bolton

Norwich boss Daniel Farke was sent to the stands in the 96th minute as the Canaries were held to a goalless draw by relegation-threatened Bolton.

Farke was dismissed for kicking the ball away after Moritz Leitner had been penalised for a foul throw.

Earlier, James Maddison curled a shot against the post and set the tone for a first-half dominated by the hosts.

Ben Alnwick also foiled Maddison and Nelson Oliveira, while Leitner sent Norwich's best chance wide.

The goalless draw saw Farke's side extend their unbeaten run to six matches, but sharing the spoils with the Trotters - after draws with leaders Wolves, neighbours Ipswich and highflying Derby in their previous three games - saw them slip to 14th in the table.

15:00 Preston 0-1 Ipswich

Mustapha Carayol scored on his first start for Ipswich as they put a dent in Preston's play-off ambitions.

The January arrival from Nottingham Forest settled the match midway through the first half, nodding Cole Skuse's ball past his marker before finishing.

Dominic Iorfa hit the bar as Ipswich dominated early on, although Preston rallied after the break.

Greg Cunningham, Josh Earl and Tom Barkhuizen tested Ipswich keeper Bartosz Bialkowski but Town held on.

Ipswich had not lost to Preston in the last six meetings between the two sides and the Tractor Boys looked on course to extend that record after Carayol put them in front.

15:00 QPR 2-5 N. Forest

Lee Tomlin scored twice as Nottingham Forest ended their five-game winless league run in style at QPR.

The Reds seized control after the break with two quick goals, Tomlin crashing in his second and then teeing up Joe Lolley for number three.

Massimo Luongo's close-range effort and a Smith header either side of a Matty Cash strike made it 4-2, but a fine run and shot

Rangers managed 17 efforts on goal - two more than the visitors - but only four were on target. Forest were rewarded for their clinical finishing with on-loan Cardiff striker Tomlin particularly impressive.

The Reds had failed to score in eight of their previous 10 matches but ended with five away from home for the first time since winning at Barnsley by the same score in November 2016.

The victory lifted Aitor Karanka's side to 15th in the Championship table, a point and a place above QPR.

15:00 Reading 3-3 Derby

Reading twice came from behind as they earned a draw against Derby and avoided losing a fifth league game in a row for the first time in their history.

Under-pressure Royals boss Jaap Stam saw his side trail to Kasey Palmer's close-range strike, but the hosts went in front through Liam Kelly's 25-yard hit and Mo Barrow's one-on-one finish.

Richard Keogh's shot and Tom Lawrence's solo effort put the Rams ahead again.

But Jon Dadi Bodvarson levelled and the Rams had Chris Baird sent off late on.

Baird's 85th-minute red card, for a lunging challenge on Barrow, provided the spark for a frantic spell of home pressure that Derby just managed to withstand.

But their failure to hold on to a lead they twice held meant they dropped a place to fourth in the Championship table following Aston Villa's victory over Sheffield Wednesday.

15:00 Sheff Wed 2-4 Aston Villa

Promotion-chasing Aston Villa twice came from behind to secure three valuable points at Sheffield Wednesday.

The hosts took an early lead when Sean Clare finished smartly from Atdhe Nuhiu's lay-off, but Lewis Grabban levelled from close range.

Lucas Joao headed the Owls back in front before the break but Glenn Whelan equalised again.

Conor Hourihane made it 3-2 to Villa with a powerful shot and Robert Snodgrass added an injury-time penalty.

Snodgrass converted after he had been fouled in the area by Frederico Venancio and the victory moved Steve Bruce's side back to within one point of second-placed Cardiff, though the Bluebirds could stretch their advantage again when they face Bristol City on Sunday.

15:00 Sunderland 3-3 Middlesbrough

Bottom-of-the-table Sunderland rescued a point in stoppage time at the end of a thrilling game with Middlesbrough.

Callum McManaman's 96th-minute strike ended a three-match losing streak for the battling Black Cats.

Joel Asoro netted for Sunderland before Jake Clarke-Salter and Adama Traore were sent off in quick succession.

Patrick Bamford and Grant Leadbitter put Boro ahead, only for Jonny Williams to level and Bamford grab what seemed to be the winner before the late goal.

The draw ended a disruptive week for Sunderland after it was revealed that under-fire owner Ellis Short was prepared to give Sunderland away for free if someone could take on the club's substantial debts.

The Black Cats - who finished bottom of the Premier League last season - are two points adrift at the bottom of the second tier and four points from safety, while Boro move up to seventh.

17:30 Fulham 2-0 Wolves Sky

Fulham consolidated their place in the Championship play-off places with a dominant victory over leaders Wolves. The hosts, unbeaten in the league in 2018, began well and led when winger Ryan Sessegnon, 17, tapped in after Aleksandar Mitrovic's shot was parried.

Ivan Cavaleiro twice tested Fulham keeper Marcus Bettinelli but Mitrovic fired in a low second from 20 yards.

Stefan Johansen almost curled in a third before Diogo Jota blazed over Wolves' best chance from close range.

Nuno Espirito Santo's side remain nine points clear of second-placed Cardiff, who play on Sunday, though their buffer to third has been cut to 10 points following Aston Villa's win at Sheffield Wednesday.


Sunday 25th February 2018


16:30 Cardiff 1-0 Bristol C  

Cardiff City restored their four-point cushion in the Championship automatic promotion places as Kenneth Zohore's late strike sank rivals Bristol City.

A full-blooded first half was high on endeavour and passion but low on chances, the best of which Cardiff could not convert.

They upped the ante after the break and, with eight minutes left, Zohore blasted in from close range.

Cardiff stay second in the table, four points clear of Aston Villa in third.

Bristol City, meanwhile, remain sixth but a run of one win in 10 league games means they are only two points in front of Middlesbrough, who are seventh.

Matchday 34 table
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Championship Fixtures - MatchDay 35
KO Home   Away TV
Friday 2nd March 2018
19:45 Middlesbrough v Leeds
Saturday 3rd March 2018
15:00 Aston Villa v QPR  
15:00 Barnsley v Norwich
15:00 Bolton v Preston
15:00 Brentford v Cardiff
15:00 Bristol C v Sheff Wed
15:00 Derby v Fulham
15:00 Ipswich v Hull
15:00 Millwall v Sunderland
15:00 N. Forest v Birmingham
15:00 Sheff Utd v Burton
17:30 Wolves v Reading
 
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