Thrilling EFL Highlights: Leicester & Ipswich Dominate, Leeds Clinch Sensational Victory

Leicester City, currently leading the Sky Bet Championship, secured their sixth consecutive win by defeating Stoke 2-0 at the King Power Stadium. Kelechi Iheanacho opened the scoring in the 24th minute, followed by Jamie Vardy's goal with 11 minutes left in regular time.

Leicester held onto their top position with a two-point lead, while Ipswich secured a comfortable eight-point lead over the play-off spots by triumphing over third-ranked Preston with a 4-2 victory at Portman Road. The Tractor Boys dominated in the first half, scoring three goals through Conor Chaplin, Brandon Williams, and Nathan Broadhead, with Mads Frokjaer-Jensen managing a response for Preston.

Ben Whiteman scored another goal for the away team soon after the second half began, and Kayden Jackson sealed the victory for Ipswich.

In the early afternoon match, Sunderland, who are in fourth place, suffered a crushing 4-0 defeat at home to their derby rivals Middlesbrough. The loss was compounded by Dan Neil being shown a red card just before half-time when the score was still tied at 0-0.

Boro dominated in the second half, with goals from Sam Greenwood, Matt Crooks, Isaiah Jones, and Marcus Forss.

Meanwhile, Leeds secured a 2-1 victory over Bristol City at home, lifting them to fifth place in the standings. Joel Piroe sealed the win with his goal.

Piroe regained the lead for the hosts in the 53rd minute following Dan James' initial goal being nullified by Kal Naismith. Blackburn put an end to their four-match losing streak in a commanding manner, securing a 4-0 victory against QPR at Loftus Road. Tyrhys Dolan and Sammie Szmodics found the back of the net on either side of Arnor Sigurdsson's brace.

Jon Dahl Tomasson's Rovers extended their lead to five points over 22nd-placed Rangers with the result.

Following three consecutive losses, Valerien Ismael's Watford halted their slide by drawing 1-1 at Cardiff. Vakoun Bayo scored the equalizer nine minutes into the second half after Mark McGuinness' first-half opener. The result leaves Watford two points above the relegation zone.

Sheffield Wednesday, who recently fired Xisco Munoz, managed to secure a point in their first match since the sacking. In a goalless Yorkshire derby at home against Huddersfield, managed by former Owls boss Darren Moore, the struggling team showed improvement.

Rotherham, second from bottom, also secured a draw in their match against Southampton. Jordan Hugill's goal leveled the score to 1-1 after Stuart Armstrong had scored for Southampton in the second minute.

Norwich and Coventry played to a 1-1 draw as a result of a late own goal by Ben Gibson. The Canaries had initially taken the lead with Jon Rowe's goal in the 41st minute.

Similarly, Hull was also unable to secure a victory and settled for a point with a 2-2 draw against Millwall. The Tigers responded to Duncan Watmore's early goal with goals from Jaden Philogene and Adama Traore. However, Joe Bryan equalized the score early in the second half.

Norwich, Hull, Cardiff, and Southampton are all one point away from securing the final play-off spot, which is currently held by Birmingham. In another match on Saturday, Swansea had a comeback victory, defeating Plymouth by a score of 3-1.

The home side led at the interval courtesy of Luke Cundle but the game then turned around with Jerry Yates, Oliver Cooper and Josh Key scoring for the Swans.

Sky Bet League One

Portsmouth stays in first place in Sky Bet League One after a 2-0 triumph over Port Vale at Fratton Park. Colby Bishop's double, including a redirect of Joe Rafferty's shot, secured the lead after 53 minutes. Bishop then sealed the team's fifth consecutive win by scoring from the penalty spot four minutes later.

Oxford maintained their momentum with a 2-1 victory against Bristol Rovers, a match that witnessed the expulsion of three players. Billy Bodin and Sam Long propelled Oxford to a 2-0 lead, with Jevani Brown receiving a red card for the Pirates. However, Aaron Collins managed to score one goal, narrowing the deficit.

In stoppage time, Oisin Smyth and Stan Mills of the U's were given red cards. Stevenage secured a 1-0 victory against Wigan with Aaron Pressley scoring his second goal of the season, while Peterborough extended their undefeated streak to six games by defeating Lincoln 2-0.

Carlisle staged a comeback to defeat Bolton 3-1, with Jordan Gibson netting a hat-trick. Meanwhile, in a 1-1 draw with Derby, Cheltenham's Rob Street finally scored the team's first goal of the season after 11 matches. Wycombe secured a convincing 4-1 victory over Fleetwood, thanks to goals from Dale Taylor (who scored twice), Freddie Potts, and Luke Leahy.

Leyton Orient secured a 2-1 victory over Reading at Brisbane Road thanks to George Moncur's last-minute goal. In other matches, Barnsley emerged victorious with a 1-0 win against Exeter, and Shrewsbury triumphed over Northampton by the same scoreline. The clash between Charlton and Blackpool concluded in a 2-2 draw.

Sky Bet League Two

Notts County remain top of League Two despite being held to a 1-1 draw at Barrow.

David McGoldrick scored a penalty in the 14th minute to give them the lead, but Dean Campbell equalized for Barrow with his own penalty 10 minutes before the end of the game.

Stockport closed the gap to County to just one point as they secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Doncaster, thanks to a late winning goal from Tanto Olaofe.

Gillingham secured their first win in four games with goals from Macauley Bonne and Scott Malone, defeating MK Dons 2-1. In a scoreless match, Mansfield and Wimbledon settled for a 0-0 draw. Despite being down to 10 players, Wrexham emerged victorious with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Crawley thanks to Ollie Palmer's third goal of the season.

Wrexham's team was left with only 10 players in the 66th minute after substitute Andy Cannon, who had only been on the field for seven minutes, was shown a straight red card for a lunging tackle on Adam Campbell.

Salford achieved their third consecutive victory by coming from behind to defeat Crewe 4-2.

Matt Smith scored two goals, while substitutes Ryan Watson and Kevin Berkoe each added one, turning the game around after Courtney Baker-Richardson had given Crewe the lead. Despite being down to 10 players, Morecambe secured an impressive 3-1 victory against Colchester, thanks to JJ McKiernan's excellent hat-trick. Accrington, Harrogate, and Sutton also emerged victorious, defeating Forest Green, Newport, and Walsall respectively.

Tranmere and Grimsby played out a 2-2 draw.