Leeds United’s push for automatic promotion from the Championship took yet another hit at the weekend.
The Whites’ unbeaten home record came to an end at the hands of Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, though their hopes of finishing in the top two remain alive due to results elsewhere.
Leicester City were beaten 1-0 away at Plymouth Argyle on Friday night, before Ipswich Town then missed a big chance to take a firm grip of the race with a 1-1 draw against Middlesbrough.
There are now just two points separating the division’s top three sides, though Leicester do have the advantage of a game in hand, which has the potential to be massive against Southampton.
The Saints are all of a sudden back in the race having looked out of it just a week or two ago, as they have taken advantage of the sides above them with back-to-back wins.
The advantage Leeds have over Ipswich in Championship promotion race
You would imagine that Leeds will finish in the top two if they are able to get themselves above Ipswich in the final three matches of the season.
Ultimately, that means Leeds will have to rely on favours from elsewhere while also doing their job, but Daniel Farke’s side certainly have an advantage over Ipswich in that regard.
Despite a nine-day break between matches, Leeds are actually in action twice before Ipswich play again. This means when the Whites have just one game remaining, Ipswich will still actually have three.
Leeds face back-to-back away matches at Middlesbrough and Queens Park Rangers, and if they are able to win both, the pressure on Ipswich going into their matches would be huge.
Six points would put Leeds four clear of Ipswich with a far superior goal difference, meaning they would have to win both games in hand to ensure it is back in their hands on the last day.
Ipswich’s next two matches are certainly no push over either, with both Hull City and Coventry City still harnessing faint hopes of finishing in that final play-off position.
What Kieran McKenna has said on Leeds and Ipswich recently
Based on recent results, it would be fair to say that all of the division’s top three sides are feeling the pressure at the moment.
Having just come up from League One, Ipswich certainly do not have the financial pressure the other three sides do, who have just come down from the Premier League.
On the pitch, that is highly unlikely to be any sort of factor, but speaking after his side’s draw to Boro, Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna does not think there is any pressure on his side.
“I don’t know. We’re coming from such a different place. If you asked me who’s under more pressure, I’m pretty sure everyone would agree it’s not us; where we’re coming from, how this group’s performed.
“I don’t feel any pressure. I think it was a really good game in isolation. I can’t speak for them (the other challengers). I can imagine their mindset and environment is possibly a little bit different than ours.”