Right then, that’s it from me. Here is the final match report, Jamie Jackson’s take on City’s win over Luton:
Updated
Peter Lansley was at the City Ground to watch Forest v Wolves:
Updated
Here is John Brewin’s on-the-whistle report from west London:
Will Unwin’s report from Burnley’s draw with Brighton has dropped:
Updated
Dominic Booth was at the Toughsheet Community Stadium to see that Pompey party spoiled:
So, in a prety breathless afternoon, where three promotions where three promotions were on the cards we got two of them. Stockport and Wrexham go up, but Portsmouth will have to wait after failing to find a winner at Bolton.
It’s around 20 minutes until KO at the Vitality where Bournemouth take on Manchester United, you can follow that with Barry Glendenning:
League Two table
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stockport County | 43 | 44 | 86 |
| 2 | Wrexham | 44 | 33 | 82 |
| 3 | Mansfield | 43 | 41 | 79 |
| 4 | Milton Keynes Dons | 44 | 13 | 74 |
| 5 | Crewe | 44 | 7 | 70 |
| 6 | Barrow | 42 | 9 | 67 |
| 7 | Crawley Town | 43 | 4 | 65 |
| 8 | Doncaster | 43 | 0 | 64 |
| 9 | Gillingham | 44 | -10 | 63 |
| 10 | AFC Wimbledon | 44 | 10 | 62 |
| 11 | Walsall | 43 | 0 | 62 |
| 12 | Harrogate Town | 44 | -7 | 62 |
| 13 | Bradford | 43 | -3 | 60 |
| 14 | Notts County | 43 | 6 | 58 |
| 15 | Morecambe | 44 | -13 | 57 |
| 16 | Newport County | 44 | -10 | 55 |
| 17 | Tranmere | 44 | -1 | 54 |
| 18 | Accrington Stanley | 43 | -8 | 54 |
| 19 | Swindon | 43 | -3 | 53 |
| 20 | Salford City | 44 | -17 | 47 |
| 21 | Grimsby | 43 | -15 | 46 |
| 22 | Colchester | 42 | -19 | 41 |
| 23 | Sutton Utd | 44 | -25 | 40 |
| 24 | Forest Green | 44 | -36 | 36 |
League Two full-time scores
Crawley 2-3 Colchester
Crewe 0-3 Grimsby
Doncaster 4-0 Accrington
Gillingham 3-0 Barrow
Harrogate 2-2 Sutton United
MK Dons 1-4 Mansfield
Newport 1-2 Tranmere
Salford 1-2 Bradford
Stockport 2-0 Morecambe
Swindon 3-2 Wimbledon
Walsall 1-3 Notts County
Wrexham 6-0 Forest Green
League One table
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portsmouth | 43 | 35 | 91 |
| 2 | Derby | 44 | 38 | 86 |
| 3 | Bolton | 43 | 33 | 82 |
| 4 | Peterborough | 42 | 25 | 77 |
| 5 | Barnsley | 43 | 20 | 75 |
| 6 | Oxford Utd | 43 | 23 | 73 |
| 7 | Blackpool | 44 | 17 | 70 |
| 8 | Lincoln City | 43 | 25 | 68 |
| 9 | Stevenage | 44 | 10 | 67 |
| 10 | Leyton Orient | 44 | -3 | 62 |
| 11 | Northampton | 44 | -8 | 59 |
| 12 | Exeter | 44 | -15 | 58 |
| 13 | Wigan | 44 | 4 | 56 |
| 14 | Wycombe | 42 | 1 | 55 |
| 15 | Bristol Rovers | 43 | -13 | 54 |
| 16 | Charlton | 44 | 0 | 52 |
| 17 | Reading | 44 | -2 | 50 |
| 18 | Cambridge Utd | 42 | -20 | 46 |
| 19 | Shrewsbury | 43 | -30 | 46 |
| 20 | Burton Albion | 43 | -25 | 43 |
| 21 | Port Vale | 43 | -30 | 40 |
| 22 | Cheltenham | 42 | -25 | 38 |
| 23 | Fleetwood Town | 43 | -24 | 37 |
| 24 | Carlisle | 44 | -36 | 30 |
League One full-time scores
Barnsley 2-2 Reading
Bolton 1-1 Portsmouth
Cambridge 1-1 Charlton
Carlisle 0-1 Blackpool
Cheltenham 1-3 Bristol Rovers
Derby 3-0 Leyton Orient
Fleetwood 2-0 Northampton
Lincoln City 1-2 Wigan
Oxford Utd 5-0 Peterborough
Port Vale 2-4 Exeter
Shrewsbury 0-2 Wycombe
Stevenage 1-2 Burton
Championship table
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ipswich | 43 | 32 | 89 |
| 2 | Leicester | 42 | 41 | 88 |
| 3 | Leeds | 43 | 42 | 87 |
| 4 | Southampton | 41 | 27 | 81 |
| 5 | West Brom | 43 | 24 | 72 |
| 6 | Norwich | 43 | 16 | 71 |
| 7 | Hull | 42 | 8 | 65 |
| 8 | Coventry | 42 | 14 | 63 |
| 9 | Middlesbrough | 43 | 5 | 63 |
| 10 | Preston North End | 42 | -1 | 63 |
| 11 | Cardiff | 43 | -12 | 59 |
| 12 | Bristol City | 43 | 4 | 58 |
| 13 | Sunderland | 43 | 2 | 56 |
| 14 | Swansea | 43 | -9 | 53 |
| 15 | Watford | 43 | 1 | 52 |
| 16 | Millwall | 43 | -13 | 50 |
| 17 | Blackburn | 43 | -14 | 49 |
| 18 | Plymouth | 43 | -8 | 48 |
| 19 | QPR | 43 | -17 | 47 |
| 20 | Stoke | 43 | -19 | 47 |
| 21 | Birmingham | 43 | -16 | 45 |
| 22 | Huddersfield | 43 | -23 | 44 |
| 23 | Sheff Wed | 43 | -31 | 44 |
| 24 | Rotherham | 43 | -53 | 23 |
Championship full-time scores
Birmingham 3-0 Coventry
Bristol City 1-1 Huddersfield
Hull 3-0 QPR
Ipswich 1-1 Middlesbrough
Millwall 3-1 Cardiff
Preston 0-1 Norwich
Sheff Wed 1-1 Stoke
Southampton 3-2 Watford
Swansea 1-0 Rotherham
West Brom 0-1 Sunderland
Premier League table
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 32 | 44 | 73 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 31 | 51 | 71 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 31 | 42 | 71 |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 32 | 17 | 60 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 32 | 16 | 60 |
| 6 | Newcastle | 32 | 17 | 50 |
| 7 | Man Utd | 31 | -1 | 49 |
| 8 | West Ham | 32 | -4 | 48 |
| 9 | Chelsea | 30 | 3 | 44 |
| 10 | Brighton | 32 | 2 | 44 |
| 11 | Wolverhampton | 32 | -5 | 43 |
| 12 | AFC Bournemouth | 31 | -10 | 41 |
| 13 | Fulham | 32 | -4 | 39 |
| 14 | Brentford | 33 | -11 | 32 |
| 15 | Crystal Palace | 31 | -18 | 30 |
| 16 | Everton | 31 | -10 | 27 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 33 | -16 | 26 |
| 18 | Luton | 33 | -24 | 25 |
| 19 | Burnley | 33 | -35 | 20 |
| 20 | Sheff Utd | 32 | -54 | 16 |
Premier League full-time scores
Brentford 2-0 Sheff Utd
Burnley 1-1 Brighton
Man City 5-1 Luton
Nottm Forest 2-2 Wolves
All over the 3pm Premier League KOs, full-time scores incoming.
Two massive late goals in the Championship! In a reverse of my earlier post, Bristol City equalise at Ashton Gate top peg back Huddersfield and Southampton have grabbed a late winner at home against Watford.
Stockport and Wrexham promoted to League One!
MK Dons defeat against Mansfield means Stockport and Wrexham go up as they both win!
Updated
I’ve somehow missed two goals at the Den, Millwall are 3-1 up against Cardiff now, Duncan Watmore getting his side’s third.
Updated
Full time: Man City 5-1 Luton
All over at the Etihad. City go top with Liverpool and Arsenal yet to play.
Updated
Mansfield now lead 4-1 at MK Dons, promotion for Stockport and Wrexham all but confirmed with that.
Goal! Man City 5-1 Luton (Gvardiol 90+3)
The final nail in the coffin?
Updated
Goal! Brentford 2-0 Sheff Utd (Onyeka 90+3)
This time the Bees have doubled their lead. That’s three points in the bag.
Updated
In League Two, Wrexham now 6-0 up and this might hurt Forest Green more as Sutton have equalised to make it 2-2 against Harrogate.
Playoff chasing Norwich have taken a late lead at Preston, Gabriel Sara making it 1-0.
Goal! Man City 4-1 Luton (Doku 87)
The Belgian winger has ended any hope of a late Luton surge.
Updated
Another couple of twists in the Championship, at both ends of ther table. Watford are level against Southampton at St Mary’s, while Huddersfield have taken the lead at Bristol City thanks to Josh Koroma.
Goal! Man City 3-1 Luton (Barkley 81)
The Hatters have one back! Some goal from Barkley who continues his fine form with a goal, might be too little, too late.
Goal! Burnley 1-1 Brighton (Muric 79 OG)
This might be worse than the opener. The Burnley stopper takes his eye off the ball and it slips under his foot and in. Two worse goals you won’t see.
Updated
Stoke have equalised at Hillsborough, Luke Cundle gets through one on one and tucks it away. It’s 1-1.
Goal! Burnley 1-0 Brighton (Brownhill 74)
This is so bad from Brighton. Baleba’s backpass is short for Bart Verbruggen in goal and Brownhill closes down and gets the reward as the ball ricochets in.
Updated
Goal! Man City 3-0 Luton (Haaland 76 pen)
He tucks it away.
Updated
Penalty to City!
Doku goes down in the box, Haaland to take it.
Updated
Big goal in the Championship! Sheffield Wednesday are in front against fellow strugglers Stoke thanks to Liam Palmer. Birmingham back in the relegation zone .
VAR check and no goal!
Instrumental in the first goal, Danish international Mikkel Damsgaard thinks he’s doubled Brentford’s lead with a neat finish but VAR has had a look and Ollie McBurnie was fouled in the buildup.
Wrexham have hit five against Forest Green, Ryan Barrett with the latest.
Celtic now 2-0 up, Kyogo has his second.
Goal! Manchester City 2-0 Luton (Kovacic 64)
Wow! That is some strike from Kovacic as the ball falls to him from a corner and midfielder arrows a volley into the top corner. You’ll be seeing plenty of that one again I should think.
Updated
Nottingham Forest 2-2 Wolves (Cunha 62)
Well that didn’t last long.
Goal! Brentford 1-0 Sheff United (Arblaster 63 OG)
It’s an own goal that breaks the deadlock, sums up the Blades season.
Updated
A couple of Championship goals to fill you in on, Birmingham now lead 3-0 against Coventry, as do Hull against QPR.
Goal! Nottingham Forest 2-1 Wolves (Danilo 57)
Forest now in front! The ball pinballs around the box as Gibbs-White tries to drive through and it fall to Danilo who slots it home.
Updated
I am watching Simon McMahon. Celtic are ahead against St Mirren thanks to Reo Hatate.
Brentford have it in the net as Matthias Jorgensen steals ahead of the Blades back line from a set-piece, but he’s clearly offside.
Wrexham on course to head up! Mansfield trailed at MK Dons but now they lead 2-1, Davis Keillor-Dunn with the goal.
More good news for Colchester, Harrogate have equalised against Sutton via George Thompson.
Colchester scrapping hard in League Two, they now lead 3-1 at Crawley thanks to Tom Hopper.
Peeeeeeep!
We are back underway!
Big question, do I have time for a tea?
Simon McMahon has sent in his fitba update:
No goals in any of the key SPL games at Celtic, Motherwell and Aberdeen at half time, or in the Scottish Championship at Raith, though Arbroath are 3-0 down at Ayr and heading to Scottish League One, while (Big Dunc’s) Inverness lead Queens Park and would swap places with them, moving out of the relegation playoff place should they hold on.
Some late EFL goals of consequence, Fraser Horsfall put Stockport 2-0 against Morecambe in County’s bid to secure promotion from League Two. In League One, Burton got a vital goal in their relegation scrap as Mark Helm headed home a corner at Stevenage.
League Two half-time scores
Crawley 1-2 Colchester
Crewe 0-1 Grimsby
Doncaster 2-0 Accrington
Gillingham 1-0 Barrow
Harrogate 0-1 Sutton United
MK Dons 1-1 Mansfield
Newport 1-2 Tranmere
Salford 1-1 Bradford
Stockport 2-0 Morecambe
Swindon 0-1 Wimbledon
Walsall 0-2 Notts County
Wrexham 4-0 Forest Green
League One half-time scores
Barnsley 1-1 Reading
Bolton 1-1 Portsmouth
Cambridge 0-1 Charlton
Carlisle 0-1 Blackpool
Cheltenham 0-1 Bristol Rovers
Derby 2-0 Leyton Orient
Fleetwood 2-0 Northampton
Lincoln City 1-1 Wigan
Oxford Utd 3-0 Peterborough
Port Vale 2-0 Exeter
Shrewsbury 0-0 Wycombe
Stevenage 0-1 Burton
Championship half-time scores
Birmingham 2-0 Coventry
Bristol City 0-0 Huddersfield
Hull 2-0 QPR
Ipswich 1-1 Middlesbrough
Millwall 2-1 Cardiff
Preston 0-0 Norwich
Sheff Wed 0-0 Stoke
Southampton 2-1 Watford
Swansea 0-0 Rotherham
West Brom 0-1 Sunderland
Premier League half-time scores
Brentford 0-0 Sheff Utd
Burnley 0-0 Brighton
Man City 1-0 Luton
Nottm Forest 1-1 Wolves=
Half-time across all games in the Premier League, scores incoming.
Updated
Paul Mullin has his second of the day for Wrexham, they’re now 4-0 up aginst Forest Green. With Sutton and Colchester leading it’s looking like a bad afternoon for Rovers.
Goal! Nottingham Forest 1-1 Wolves (Gibbs-White 45+1)
The Forest talisman has equalised, getting to a set-piece first to beat Jose Sa.
Updated
Birmingham are 2-0 up! Ivan Sunjic’s goal takes the Blues out of the Championship drop zone.
Goal! Nottingham Forest 0-1 Wolves (Cunha 40)
Tenth Premier League goal of the season on his return to the side and it’s a beauty!
Updated
Oh Neal, what have you done? The Brentford striker squanders a huge chance to give his side the lead against Sheffield United.
Put the champagne on ice in Portsmouth! Aaron Collins has equalised for Bolton.
This is going to twist and turn all afternoon, Watford have one back at St Mary’s. Ryan Porteous has halved Southampton’s lead, it’s now 2-1.
In League Two, Wrexham are now 3-0 up.
Ipswich are level! Massimo Luongo has the crucial goal, did you know he was once on the shortlist for the Ballon d’Or?
Fleetwood have doubled their lead against Northamptonin the battle for League One survival. In League Two, Mansfield have equalised at MK Dons, this would mean Wrexham are promoted alongside Stockport if the scores stay as they are.
Brighton are starting to get into their groove at Turf Moor. Carlos Baleba has got hold of the midfield and Pascal Gross is pulling the strings to create a couple of dangerous openings. No goals yet though.
Wrexham have scored again, Paul Mullin putting them 2-0 up. In the Championship, Millwall have been pegged back with Yakou Meite scoring for Cardiff.
Southampton could benefit from the void of ruthlessness at the top of the Championship, they’re 2-0 up against Watford and Boro now lead at Portman Road thanks to Emmanuel Latte Lath!
Updated
Not a lot going on in Premier League right now. Burnley and Brighton very much feeling each other out, but the Seagulls have lost Pervis Estupinan to injury already. Igor is on in the Ecuadorian’s place.
In League Two, Stockport need a win to earn promotion, they lead Morecambe. MK Dons and Wrexham are also ahead against Manfield and Forest Green respectively.
Jeremy Boyce is getting physical via email:
We all agree, there is a “too big to go down” syndrome in the Premier League, which doesn’t stop plenty of clubs falling. But in a very much Newtonian sense of equals and opposites, is there a “too big to not go up syndrome” that has also afflicted those trying to reverse ferret their way back up. Leeds and Leicester are doing their best to prove the theory, leaving the door wide open for Einstein Ipswich to overturn the expert thinking with their pleasing brand of Quantum footie. Or will they ?
Oooft, this is big. The bottom of the Championship is a tasty place to be this afternoon. Bobby Thomas has put the ball in his own net to give Birmingham an early lead against playoff-chasing Coventry.
Millwall have put together a few results under watchful eye of Neil Harris and look good to retain their Championship. They’ve taken an early lead against Cardiff, elsewhere Hull are beating QPR.
Another big goal in League One, this time at the top of the table. Portsmouth have the first goal at the Toughsheet Community Stadium where a win over Bolton will secure the title. Abu Kamara has scored it!
Updated
Big goal for Fleetwood, they need a win to maintain any hopes of League One survival and Promise Omochere has them in front against Northampton.
More early goals, these across the EFL. Southampton are 1-0 up against Watford, Blackpool lead at Carlisle, AFC Wimbledon lead at Swindon and Notts County have an early advantage at Walsall.
Goal! Manchester City 1-0 Luton (Hashioka 2 OG)
Not the start Luton were looking for as Erling Haaland’s off-target effort hits defender Daiki Hashioka and goes in.
Updated
Peeep!
We are off!
Teams heading out of the tunnels for the Saturday 3pm kick-offs. We’ll be underway shortly…
Richard is scared of the City bench:
That’s some bench City have. I reckon the nine of them could beat half the teams in the Premier League.
Ortega in goal; back three of Walker, Gomez and Ake; midfield of Bernando Silva, Rodri, Grealish and Foden, Bobb as false nine? It’s not bad is it?
Fitba preview from Simon McMahon:
In Scotland, a win at home to St. Mirren will see Celtic go four points clear of Rangers, but having played two games more. The battle for top six places is reaching its conclusion with the key games being Motherwell v Hibs and Aberdeen v Dundee.
In the Scottish Championship leaders Dundee United won 4-1 at Morton last night, so all eyes today will be on Kirkcaldy where second place Raith meet third place Partick. Should Raith drop points, United could effectively seal the title by beating Ayr at Tannadice next week. They don’t call it the business end of the season for nothing, do they?
Huge result in the Championship, struggling Blackburn have gone to Leeds and won. Sammie Szmodics (who else?) got the only goal. All eyes on Ipswich now, does anyone want to win the title?
All over at St James’, all the reaction with Barry here:
Wolves make one change as Rayan Ait-Nouri doesn’t make the squad and Matheus Cunha starts. Hwang Hee-chan on the bench.
For Forest, Gio Reyna starts but Anthony Elanga is out and Morgan Gibbs-White is fit despite some concerns during the week.
Things of note in the City lineup, Kyle Walker is back on the bench after getting injured on England duty and he’s joined their by Phil Foden who has a knock.
Reece Burke is fit enough to start for Luton, Fred Onyedinma comes in for the Issa Kabore, who can’t play against his prent club and Luke Berry also starts.
Team news: Brentford v Sheffield United
Brentford: Flekken, Roerslev, Jorgensen, Collins, Reguilon, Jensen, Janelt, Damsgaard, Mbeumo, Maupay, Wissa.
Subs: Pinnock, Schade, Ghoddos, Onyeka, Toney, Strakosha, Lewis-Potter, Baptiste, Yarmolyuk.
Sheffield United: Grbic, Holgate, Ahmedhodzic, Trusty, Bogle, Hamer, Arblaster, Osborn, Larouci, Brereton, McBurnie.
Subs: Archer, Norwood, Foderingham, Vinicius Souza, Ben Slimane, McAtee, Curtis, Osula, Brooks.
Team news: Burnley v Brighton
Burnley: Muric, Vitinho, Ekdal, Esteve, Assignon, Foster, Cullen, Berge, Bruun Larsen, Odobert, Fofana.
Subs: Trafford, Taylor, Gudmundsson, Brownhill, Rodriguez, Benson, Amdouni, Ndayishimiye, Massengo.
Brighton: Verbruggen, Veltman, van Hecke, Dunk, Estupinan, Gross, Baleba, Adingra, Moder, Joao Pedro, Welbeck.
Subs: Igor, Lallana, Barco, Steele, Fati, Buonanotte, Offiah, Peupion, O’Mahony.
Team news: Nottingham Forest v Wolves
Nottingham Forest: Sels, Williams, Omobamidele, Murillo, Aina, Yates, Danilo, Hudson-Odoi, Gibbs-White, Reyna, Wood.
Subs: Turner, Tavares, Sangare, Toffolo, Dominguez, Niakhate, Origi, Montiel, Duarte Ribeiro.
Wolves: Jose Sa, Santiago Bueno, Kilman, Gomes, Nelson Semedo, Mario Lemina, Joao Gomes, Doherty, Sarabia, Doyle, Matheus Cunha.
Subs: Traore, Hwang, Dawson, Hugo Bueno, Bentley, King, Barnett, Chirewa, Fraser.
Team news: Manchester City v Luton
Manchester City: Ederson, Akanji, Dias, Gvardiol, Lewis, Kovacic, Matheus Luiz, Alvarez, De Bruyne, Doku, Haaland.
Subs: Walker, Ake, Grealish, Rodri, Ortega, Bernardo Silva, Gomez, Foden, Bobb.
Luton: Kaminski, Onyedinma, Hashioka, Burke, Doughty, Chong, Barkley, Berry, Clark, Morris, Townsend.
Subs: Shea, Woodrow, Mpanzu, Krul, Johnson, Chigozie, Nelson, Piesold, Harris.
Team news in ten minutes, but before that you can follow events at St James’ Park where Newcastle are all over Tottenham:
Preamble
“I don’t want to go back to the Championship, and I know the lads don’t either.”
These were the words of Rob Edwards in his interview with Emma John ahead of Luton’s trip to the Etihad to face Manchester City, but today is probably one his side will have to write off in their pursuit of survival. The Hatters have been great value during their return to the top flight but a visit to the home of the champions is probably not what the doctor ordered at this stage of the season. City, fresh from playing out a 3-3 thriller at the Bernabeu, are motivated and in form.
Events at the City Ground will be closely monitored by Luton fans. Nottingham Forest, level on points with Edwards’ men, take on a Wolves side who have faltered lately under the weight of a lengthy injury list.
Elsewhere, Brighton will be aiming to keep their faint and fading European hopes alive by beating Burnley, while Brentford can take a step closer to safety with a win over Sheffield United.
In the Championship, Ipswich can go top of the table by ending a two-game winless run against Middlesbrough. Defeat at Portman Road would all but end any playoff hopes for Michael Carrick’s side.
At the other end of the table, Sheffield Wednesday travel to Stoke knowing a win would see them draw level with the Potters’ points tally and prolong the relegation dogfight. Elsewhere, fellow strugglers Huddersfield head to Ashton Gate to take on Bristol City and Birmingham host Coventry. Millwall, who have daylight in the race to avoid the drop, take on Cardiff.
Portsmouth can win the League One title if they beat Bolton, while Fleetwood will join doomed Carlisle in League Two next season if they fail to beat Northampton and Burton win at Stevenage.
In the fourth tier, Stockport will seal promotion if they get a point or better against Morecambe.
