It was a fairly quiet weekend of action as the Sky Bet Championship came to a close before the international break, with plenty of low-scoring games up and down the country. Seven of the nine matches played had just two goals or less, but there were some vital results that had huge ramifications at both ends of the league standings.
Birmingham City made a huge step towards safety with a 1-0 win away at fellow relegation battlers Queens Park Rangers, while 22nd-placed Huddersfield Town earned a first victory in six games to put pressure on Cardiff City, who are now just three places above the drop.
Elsewhere, there were 1-1 draws across the board for Reading, Hull City, Watford, Wigan Athletic, Sunderland and Luton Town, whereas Swansea City got one over their rivals Bristol City with a dominant 2-0 win on Sunday.
The two most comfortable victories of the weekend, though, were for two sides chasing promotion. Middlesbrough thrashed Preston North End by four goals to nil at the Riverside Stadium and Coventry City swept aside Blackpool with ease, beating them 4-1.
So many players impressed this weekend just gone that it would be difficult to select just 11 to form a team of the week but, rather thankfully, WhoScored’s rating system makes things a lot easier. With that in mind, here are the best-performing stars based on WhoScored ratings. See below.

5. Tom Lees (Huddersfield Town) - 7.74
It was a huge win for Neil Warnock’s Terrier’s away at Millwall and Lees was their highest rated player for good reason. He won five aerial duels and made 11 clearances. | Getty Images

6. Kyle McFadzdean (Coventry City) - 8.20
His side may have conceded a goal but the experienced defender did all he could to stop any more, with five clearances, two tackles and six aerials won. | Getty Images

7. Jonny Howson (Middlesbrough) - 8.04
Was everywhere in midfield for Boro as he won two tackles and progressed forward with the ball four times. Made more passes than any other player (79). | Getty Images

8. Tahith Chong (Birmingham City) - 8.06
Scored the winner in a huge relegation six-pointer for Birmingham. Also created two chances and made three tackles in an all-action performance. | Getty Images


