Ipswich and Leeds drop points in race for Premier League promotion

The race for guaranteed promotion to the Premier League took another twist on Saturday as more teams at the top of the Championship table dropped points.

After Leicester stumbled again with a 1-0 defeat at Plymouth on Friday and Leeds lost ground by losing to Blackburn by the same score earlier on Saturday, it left Ipswich with a chance to pull clear.

But Ipswich had to settle for a 1-1 draw at home to Middlesbrough.

⏱️ It finishes level. pic.twitter.com/uUzXnqk8xQ

A share of the spoils at Portman Road put Ipswich a point clear of Leicester at the top.

Ipswich have three league fixtures left to play but Leicester have a game in hand.

Only the top two teams at the end of the regular season are guaranteed automatic promotion to the lucrative Premier League, with the final place decided by a series of play-off games involving the teams finishing third to sixth.

Middlesbrough took the lead after 20 minutes through a header from Emmanuel Latte Lath but Ipswich equalised 10 minutes later when Massimo Luongo thundered in a corner.

"Frustration isn't my feeling at the moment," said Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna.

"Maybe it will be tomorrow, but at the moment it's pride around the performance."

Leeds were left third, a point behind Leicester, after Sammie Szmodics's 24th league goal of the season, eight minutes from time, sealed a 1-0 win for Blackburn.