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Frank Lampard praised his side’s stirring second-half display after Coventry went top of the Championship with a 5-0 rout of Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough.
Brandon Thomas-Asante scored twice in the first half with Haji Wright adding a third on the stroke of half-time. Substitute Ellis Simms and Tatsuhiro Sakamoto added further goals in the second period to complete a comprehensive victory.
There was an on-the-pitch demonstration from a group of home supporters early on, protesting against owner Dejphon Chansiri, which delayed the match for around five minutes.
Lampard said: “The early goal helped but made us a bit sloppy through the first half. I think we weren’t quite our usual selves off the ball. Little bits that we had to talk about at half-time. But of course, when you get your goals and we create the amount of chances that we do, then at the moment, the form that we’re in, you’ve got a great chance. It’s a period where we’re playing well. All the work that we do is coming together. It won’t always be that way, but at this point, yeah, we’re very clinical.”
Commenting on the on-pitch protest, Lampard said: “I very much sympathise with them. I think they’re doing great in the way they’re carrying themselves and even the fans coming on the pitch, in my opinion, is understandable and they came off quickly. I want to say that because this is a great club.”
It was a bruising day for Sheffield, as Wednesday’s rivals United remained bottom of the table after losing 1-0 to Hull. David Akintola gave the Tigers the lead after 30 minutes at the MKM Stadium before the Blades’ Gustavo Hamer shot against the post.
Hull sat on their lead for large periods of the second half as Hamer was denied a leveller on more than one occasion, before Pandur’s late heroics secured the victory, saving a penalty from Harrison Burrows. It was a third league win of the season for Hull, but an eighth defeat for the Blades.
Chris Wilder admitted his United side failed to make the most of their chances, saying: “When we get into those positions, we have to put teams to bed. We need patience, we need time to work, but players have got to give their heads a shake. At times players have got to find those answers. It’s frustrating for the supporters and for the players.”
Middlesbrough missed the chance to move back to the top of the table after their unbeaten start to the season was ended by a 1-0 defeat at Portsmouth. Boro needed a point to return to the summit following Coventry’s win earlier in the day, but the South Korean winger Yang Min-hyeok’s first-half strike was enough to earn Pompey a first win in five league games.
Stunning strikes from Jordan James and Abdul Fatawu helped Leicester return to winning ways with a 3-1 victory at Swansea. Wales midfielder James, on loan from Rennes for the season, gave Leicester a 13th-minute lead with his second goal in successive games.
Adam Idah equalised from the penalty spot after 70 minutes – his first Swansea goal since joining from Celtic in a deal worth around £6m in September – but Leicester were not to be denied. Fatawu produced another sensational strike seven minutes later and Jannik Vestergaard sealed matters with a close-range header.
The win ended a sequence of four consecutive draws for Leicester – their longest such run since 2004 – and moved them up to third in the table.
Substitute Paul Smyth netted a late winner as QPR came from behind to snatch a 2-1 victory over Bristol City at Ashton Gate. The home side took a 32nd-minute lead when Neto Borges did well to volley a deep Mark Sykes cross from the right back across goal and Emil Riis found himself in space to bury a well-placed header past Paul Nardi.
But Rangers hit back after 66 minutes when City’s defence failed to deal with a ball into their box from the right and Richard Kone pounced to smash a fierce volley into the roof of the net from 10 yards. The winner came after 84 minutes, Smyth outjumping his marker at the far post to score with a pinpoint header from a right-wing cross by Jimmy Dunne.
It was the second time in the space of four days City had surrendered a lead in a home game while Rangers stretched their unbeaten run to six games.
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Valérien Ismaël praised substitute Augustus Kargbo’s “perfect” reaction after he put his midweek mistake behind him and fired the equaliser in Blackburn’s 1-1 draw with Stoke. Sierra Leone international Kargbo came under fire on Tuesday night after he gave the ball away against Swansea and failed to track back as the Swans scored the winning goal.
But he climbed off the bench against Stoke and made his mark on a game Rovers were losing after Million Manhoef’s deflected strike early in the second half gave the Potters the advantage. Kargbo popped up in the 82nd minute to control brilliantly and maintain his composure before finding the bottom corner, and he also smashed an effort against the post late on as Blackburn tried to force a winner.
“It’s always about the reaction,” said Ismaël. “Mistakes happen in football, everyone makes mistakes and it’s important how is the reaction straight away after the mistake on the pitch? And AK made the perfect reaction we expected from the football player.”
Thierry Small scored against his old club as Preston beat Charlton 2-0. The 21-year-old, who was getting token jeers from the away following, responded with a deflected opener in the 67th minute. In a game of attrition on a windy afternoon, Daniel Jebbison scored his first goal for Preston to double the lead late in the second half.
Zak Sturge’s first goal for Millwall capped a 3-0 victory over West Brom that put their midweek hiding at the hands of Coventry behind them. Alex Neil made seven changes in response to his side’s third home loss in four games on Wednesday and what he got from his new-look lineup was a vastly improved showing in both boxes.
Captain Jake Cooper lifted the mood with his first-half opener and, after Femi Azeez’s stunning strike doubled their advantage, former Chelsea youngster Sturge rifled in as West Brom were beaten for just the second time this season.
Jeremy Ngakia struck twice in the first half to earn Watford at comeback home win over Oxford United. The visitors led early on through a Max Alleyne own goal, but Ngakia turned it round just before the break.
United States international Patrick Agyemang scored his first goal in English football but Derby are still waiting for a home win after they were held 1-1 by Southampton. In an entertaining game full of chances, Adam Armstrong put the Saints ahead before Agyemang pounced late in the first half.
On Friday night, Wrexham earned a third successive 1-1 draw, against Birmingham, leading Phil Parkinson to say his side are growing into the division. George Dobson nodded the home side ahead inside 13 minutes, but Patrick Roberts equalised for Birmingham within 25 seconds of the restart.
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