Championship today as Burnley and Blades close gap on Leeds United, while Derby County’s great escape continues

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The bad news is we’re not in an international break, with no Championship matches until the 28th March. But, the good news is EFL Analysis has a roundup of all the best action from this weekend’s games so you can relive it all again.

While some teams, like Burnley, Sheffield United, Derby County, and Coventry City will be eager to look back at what they achieved this weekend, others, like Leeds United, Plymouth Argyle, and Sunderland will want to forget all about it as quick as possible.

Bristol City kicked off the weekend by proving they are one to watch in the race between the play-off candidates, with an important 2-1 win over Norwich City, to kill the Canaries hopes of breaching the top six.

Meanwhile Cardiff City, Oxford United, and Derby picked up huge wins at the foot of the table, while Stoke City continue to be dragged into the relegation dogfight after losing to Millwall in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off.

With eight games to go in the Championship after the international break, there are still so many teams fighting for the title, the play-offs, and to survive. And we’ve got all the big talking points wrapped up for you here.

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Ruthless Burnley march on

The Championship title race is becoming more and more fascinating as the weeks tick by, and at the moment, it is Burnley who look most likely to put together the run needed to steal the top prize.

The Clarets stormed to a 2-0 win over Swansea City, and were in complete control of the game throughout. Indeed, the result was wrapped up after just 22 minutes, with goals from Josh Brownhill and Jaidon Anthony securing the three points.

Rival fans were impressed by Burnley’s dominance — and a little worried — about the threat Scott Parker’s team now pose up at the top of the table.

With their impenetrable defence, and the Burnley forwards finding their shooting boots, there’s a good chance Parker could be celebrating promotion come May.

Leeds United falter once again

Meanwhile, Leeds United stuttered against QPR, only managing a 2-2 draw at Loftus Road. Experts predicted a tough time for the Whites, and they weren’t wrong here.

After the game, Daniel Farke admitted he should’ve started Wilfried Gnonto to give his team a better chance from the off. Hindsight is a fine thing, isn’t it?

Leeds fans criticised Brenden Aaronson in the wake of the draw, and it’s a stalemate that could end up costing the Yorkshire outfit dearly come the end of the season.

They now head into the international break top of the table on goal difference alone. Could history be repeating itself once again? Farke will certainly hope not.

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Derby County inch closer to survival

John Eustace took on an unenviable task when he joined Derby County, but he’s made some big changes already that have paid dividends.

The Rams are now on a run of three straight wins after beating Blackburn Rovers, Coventry City, and at the weekend, bagging a huge 3-2 win over relegation rivals Plymouth Argyle thanks to an 88th minute winner from Marcus Harness.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
20	Stoke CityStoke City	38	9	12	17	37	51	-14	39
21	CardiffCardiff	38	9	12	17	42	62	-20	39
22	DerbyDerby	38	10	8	20	40	51	-11	38
23	LutonLuton	38	9	8	21	34	60	-26	35
24	PlymouthPlymouth	38	7	12	19	40	77	-37	33

Harness outlined the impact of Eustace in turning around Derby’s fortunes, especially in comparison with former manager Paul Warne, with some slight tactical tweaks making all the difference.

Derby are now one point off 21st placed Cardiff City — who also won this weekend — and 20th placed Stoke City. With eight games to go, its all to play for now, and momentum has certainly started to flow in the Rams’ direction.

Sheffield United make history in Steel City derby win

The big game this weekend saw Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday both searching for a crucial three points to add to their respective promotion pushes.

In the end, it was the Blades who got the win with a narrow 1-0 victory. Based on our player ratings from the Steel City derby, it’s clear to see which team dominated.

Rhian Brewster scored the winning goal, prompting United fans to hail him as ‘unreal’ and cementing his place in folklore for the Blades, who make it a Steel City double this season.

Meanwhile, Wednesday fans were unhappy with Barry Bannan, who was anonymous on the day. That defeat may just have ended the Owls’ outside chances of a play-off place, too.

But, for Chris Wilder’s side, it’s enough to take them level on points with Leeds. Only goal difference separates the two teams now, and it’s all to play for in the final eight games of the season after the international break.