LAST UPDATE | 23 Dec 2023
LEEDS KICK-STARTED their bid for an instant Premier League return with a thumping 4-0 win against automatic promotion rivals Ipswich at Elland Road.
Skipper Pascal Struijk’s early header, Leif Davis’s own goal and Crysencio Summerville’s penalty left the home fans bouncing at half-time as the Tractor Boys hurtled towards only their third league defeat of the season.
Joel Piroe crashed home an emphatic finish early in the second half and Leeds, who dropped five points in their previous two matches, could have added more.
Piroe and Georginio Rutter both saw efforts hit the woodwork and while Conor Chaplin’s first-half shot clipped a post, it was one-way traffic in the lunchtime kick-off.
Daniel Farke’s side extended their unbeaten home record this season to 12 matches and cut the gap between themselves and second-placed Ipswich to seven points.
Leeds will be hoping Kieran McKenna’s side drop more points against leaders Leicester on Stephen’s Day.
Leicester, meanwhile, went six points clear of Ipswich with a 3-0 win over bottom-of-the-table Rotherham. By contrast, it was a day of little movement, with all of the bottom four losing: Sheffield Wednesday lost 2-1 to Cardiff, QPR lost 1-0 to Southampton – for whom Gavin Bazunu played all 90 minutes – while Huddersfield were beaten 2-0 by Norwich.
The sides immediately above them – Stoke and Millwall – played out a goalless draw against each other, while the next-two highest ranked sides drew too, but in altogether more spectacular circumstances.
Wayne Rooney’s Birmingham led Plymouth 2-0 and then 3-1 but had to settle for a 3-3 draw, playing almost all of the second half with 10 men after the sending off of Krystian Bielik. Ireland U21 international Finn Azaz created Plymouth’s 88th-minute equaliser, for Morgan Whittaker.
Elsewhere, Michael Beale endured a terrible start to life as Sunderland manager, as his side were hammered 3-0 at home by Coventry.
Fifth-placed West Brom lost 1-0 away to Middlesbrough, while two late goals earned Watford a comeback, 2-1 win away to Blackburn.
Championship results
- Leeds 4-0 Ipswich
- Blackburn 1-2 Watford
- Leicester 3-0 Watford
- Middlesbrough 1-0 West Brom
- Norwich 2-0 Huddersfield
- Plymouth 3-3 Birmingham
- QPR 0-1 Southampton
- Sheffield Wednesday 1-2 Cardiff
- Stoke 0-0 Millwall
- Sunderland 0-3 Coventry
With reporting by PA
Updated at 17.13 with details of 15.00 kick offs
