Middlesbrough narrowed the gap on Championship leaders Coventry City to five points with a 2-1 victory over Charlton Athletic. This win follows their impressive 4-1 triumph against Hull City last Friday.
Kim Hellberg’s team started strong, scoring first-half goals through Riley McGree and Morgan Whittaker at The Valley. Despite missing several chances to increase their lead in the second half, they secured their third consecutive win under new manager Hellberg.
Coventry City’s struggles were highlighted by a 1-1 draw against Preston North End at Deepdale. Liam Lindsay’s red card in the first half put Coventry under pressure. Their situation worsened when Andrew Hughes scored an own goal with 20 minutes left. However, Daniel Jebbison equalised six minutes later from Pol Valentin’s cross. This result marked two games without a win for Coventry, leaving Preston fourth, seven points behind Middlesbrough.
QPR climbed into the play-off positions after a dramatic 2-1 win over Birmingham City at Loftus Road. Captain Jimmy Dunne gave QPR the lead just before halftime. Patrick Roberts seemed to have secured a point for Birmingham in the 93rd minute, but Kieran Morgan scored in the sixth minute of added time, lifting QPR to sixth place ahead of other midweek matches.
Southampton is closely following QPR in the race for the top six after securing their sixth win in seven league games with a 3-2 victory over West Brom at home. Adam Armstrong scored twice in the first half after Leo Scienza’s opener, putting Southampton on track for an easy win. However, they faced late pressure after Nat Phillips’ header followed Karlan Grant’s goal just past the hour mark. Tonda Eckert’s team held on to remain eighth, just one point behind QPR.
Coventry’s Unfortunate Record Against Preston
Frank Lampard likely anticipated challenges at Deepdale, given Coventry City’s poor record there. They have never won in 23 away league matches against Preston (D8L15). This streak is now extended to 24 games and represents both Coventry’s longest away drought against any team and Preston’s longest unbeaten home run against any opponent. Despite Coventry achieving an expected goals (xG) of 1.69 compared to Preston’s 0.29, they couldn’t break this streak.
The recent results have intensified competition within the Championship standings as teams vie for top positions and play-off spots. Middlesbrough’s consistent performances under Hellberg have positioned them as strong contenders, while Coventry City must overcome their current challenges to maintain their lead.