MX23RW : Tuesday, April 23 10:47:43| >> :600:119020845:119020845:

Championship roundup: Brentford continue to put pressure on Championship top two

Championship roundup: Brentford continue to put pressure on Championship top two
© Reuters
Leeds and West Brom are looking over their shoulder.

Brentford moved to within a point of the Championship automatic-promotion places after a 1-0 home win over Preston.

Ollie Watkins scored the only goal of the game after just four minutes as the Bees continued to heap pressure on second-placed West Brom.

After being played through by Emiliano Marcondes, Watkins took a touch before firing past goalkeeper Declan Rudd for his 25th goal of the season to move ahead of Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic in the Golden Boot race.

Brentford held on to maintain their flawless record since the resumption in June, equalling a club record of eight successive league wins in the same season in what could be their penultimate match at Griffin Park, the club's home since 1904.

At the other end of the table, Stoke inched towards safety with a 1-1 draw at Bristol City.

Danny Batth's second-half header gave Stoke a share of the points their endeavour deserved after Filip Benkovic, another central defender showing the finishing instincts of a striker, had given the Robins the lead just before the break.

Victory would have almost secured Stoke's Championship status and, though a draw leaves them with some work to do, manager Michael O'Neill will be confident they can finish the job now they are five points above the relegation zone.

Relegation-threatened Charlton were denied a vital victory at Birmingham by Lukas Jutkiewicz's injury-time equaliser.

It looked like Macauley Bonne's 58th-minute goal would see the Addicks move four points above the drop zone but Jutkiewicz struck in the third minute of added time and the visitors had to settle for a two-point cushion above the bottom three.

It was also a much-needed point for Blues, who are now five points clear of the drop zone after halting a four-match losing run.

Sammy Ameobi scored twice to leave Nottingham Forest with one foot in the play-offs and Swansea's top-six hopes looking rather more slender following a 2-2 draw at the City Ground.

The Reds winger netted from the edge of the box in spectacular fashion in both halves, to cancel out a fine strike from Rhian Brewster and a controversial penalty from Andre Ayew.

It left Sabri Lamouchi's side sitting in fifth, five points clear of seventh-placed Millwall, with two games to play, while Steve Cooper's Swans are a point behind the Lions in eighth, with Welsh rivals Cardiff currently holding on to the final play-off spot.

ID:406674: cacheID:406674:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5604:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Stoke City manager Michael O'Neill pictured on July 4, 2020
Read Next:
Michael O'Neill: 'We won't celebrate avoiding the drop'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal33235577265174
2Liverpool33228375324374
3Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham34139125463-948
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves33127144653-743
12Fulham34126165054-442
13Bournemouth33119134860-1242
14Crystal Palace3399154256-1436
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton33108153448-1430
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3467214775-2825
19Burnley3458213769-3223
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3337233188-5716


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!