John Eustace admitted relegation-threatened Blackburn had let their travelling fans down by gifting Bristol City all five goals at Ashton Gate.

Tommy Conway capitalised on a bad error by Dominic Hyam to shoot City ahead in the 24th minute and doubled the advantage with a first-half penalty after the defender had brought down Mark Sykes.

Anis Mehmeti fired the third in the 73rd minute after another Hyam slip and two late Nahki Wells goals, the first another penalty, awarded for handball against Kyle McFadzean, completed mid-table City’s biggest Championship win of the season.

The result left Rovers just three points above the drop zone with four games left and head coach Eustace, who made four half-time substitutions, admitted: “I could have taken the whole team off.

“Tonight was so unlike how we have been recently. There wasn’t the fight we have been displaying and we gifted them all their goals.

“We have let our fans down. I said there would be highs and lows when I took the job and tonight is very much a low.

“I am very disappointed, but I know I have a good group of lads and we will go again against Leeds at Elland Road on Saturday.

“I expect a response from the players in that game and it’s important the supporters stay with us. We are all in this together and before tonight there have been a lot of positives.

“I don’t think the result will affect confidence. Individual errors have cost us, the first ones just as we seemed to be taking control of the game.

“All games are tough in the Championship and we will continue to take each one as it comes.”

City head coach Liam Manning was understandably buzzing.

“I’m delighted,” he said. “The togetherness and willingness to run, while staying focused and in control, was tremendous.

“Tactically, a lot clicked. We felt we could hurt them down the sides and that’s how it proved.

“The balls forward were good and our forward players were prepared to chase lost causes.

“Our front players need to be our first defenders. Two or three of Tommy Conway’s goals this season have come from being exactly that.

“The international break was hugely important for me in terms of working with the players on grass and we have seen the benefits in the matches since.

“Nahki Wells’ goals took him to 100 in Championship football, so it’s a proud night for him and his family.”

Florian Wirtz should follow Xabi Alonso's lead and reject interest from Europe's top clubs to stay at Bayer Leverkusen beyond this season, says former Germany international Carsten Ramelow.

Wirtz has been one of the standout performers in a remarkable campaign for Leverkusen, who are just one win away from clinching their first Bundesliga title.

The attacking midfielder has 18 goal involvements in 28 league outings this term (eight goals, 10 assists), with his latest goal coming from the penalty spot in Saturday's win over Union Berlin.  

Among all Bundesliga players, Wirtz ranks third for successful dribbles (77), fifth for chances created (70) and fourth for expected assists (9.23 xA) this season.

His performances have won him plenty of admirers, with Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and Real Madrid among those credited with an interest in the 20-year-old.

However, after seeing head coach Alonso reaffirm his commitment to Leverkusen, Ramelow, who made over 400 appearances for Die Werkself between 1995 and 2008, thinks Wirtz should follow suit. 

"For Leverkusen, he is indispensable," the 2002 World Cup finalist told Stats Perform. "The same goes for the national team, where he has found a good role. 

"There's a lot of speculation. When you're in great form, the big teams come knocking. Leverkusen hope he will continue with them for a while and move on after that. 

"In my opinion, it would be good for his development to stay in Leverkusen, because you can see if young players leave too early, it is not always good."

With Alonso refusing to jump ship, Ramelow feels Leverkusen still have plenty to offer Wirtz, saying: "To show consistent performances, you have to be where you feel happy, and I think Leverkusen is a good place currently. 

"They are so consistent. They have a lot of confidence and also a pinch of luck in the final moments to win games. That's really good. You have to look at the collective, the coach and his staff.

"But of course, Wirtz is a very young player who showed his talent many times over the last few years. He has made really good development and has lots more to come.

"Why not continue on that path for another one, two, maybe even three years and make the next step afterwards? This is what I think is the right way, but we will see what decision Wirtz takes."

Remarkably, Leverkusen are yet to lose a game in any competition this season. They have just six further games to navigate in the Bundesliga, while they will face second tier Kaiserslautern in May's DFB-Pokal final and are among the favourites to win the Europa League.

 As Leverkusen look to banish the ghosts of 2001-02 – when they finished as runners up in the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League – Ramelow says all the credit lies with Alonso.

"When he arrived in Leverkusen, he was facing a few problems, which is normal. I think you have to give managers some time in this day and age," Ramelow said.

"That is what they did with him. He explained his philosophy and ideas very well to the team. The boys execute that really well. 

"The whole package is in perfect harmony. The season they have played is phenomenal. Their streak is sensational and it looks like they will do this until the end. 

"Every team has a bit of a lapse every season, but Leverkusen have been exceptional across all competitions. They can still win everything. Things are looking really good."

Phil Foden admits his confidence is soaring after delivering for Manchester City yet again.

The England international claimed his 22nd goal of the campaign with a stunning strike from outside the area in City’s thrilling 3-3 draw at Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old, who scored a hat-trick against Aston Villa earlier this month, appears to be City’s most in-form player heading into the closing stages of a season they hope will yield another three trophies.

“I seem to be in good scoring form this year,” said academy graduate Foden. “When you’re scoring, your confidence is really high.

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“I put it down to my determination and wanting to score goals. I always believe – no matter what – I’m going to get a chance in the game and hopefully I can put them away.”

Foden’s brilliant long-range effort at the Bernabeu pulled City back level at 2-2 after they had surrendered the lead.

“It’s one of the best goals I’ve scored,” he said. “I always have this special ability in and around the box where I see myself scoring a lot of goals – it’s one of those you practice on the training ground after training.

“When I received it on the edge of the box, I thought why not try it. Thankfully I got a chance in the game to do that. I made good contact with it and when it went in the top corner, I was delighted.

“It’s one of the best feelings – to score in one of the best stadiums in the world, I can say I’ve ticked it off the bucket list now.”

Foden’s goal was followed up by an equally impressive strike from Josko Gvardiol but Real hit back to level again and ensure the second leg of the quarter-final next week will begin evenly poised.

“We stayed calm when we went behind and we just played our football, we grew into the game,” Foden said.

“I feel we’ve come a long way to come here and do what we did. We could have controlled it better when we went 3-2 up but we’re playing one of the best teams in the world.

“Overall, it’s not a bad result for us. To come here and score three goals, we’ll take it back to the Etihad.”

Brazil international Raphinha scored twice as Barcelona recorded a thrilling 3-2 Champions League quarter-final first leg victory over Paris St Germain at Parc des Princes.

The former Leeds winger opened the scoring just before half-time, but PSG hit back with two goals in two minutes just after the break.

Ousmane Dembele equalised against his old club before Vitinha’s effort rocked the Spanish giants.

Luis Enrique’s Ligue 1 hosts hit the woodwork either side of Raphinha’s equaliser midway through the second period.

And Andreas Christensen settled an engrossing encounter between two heavyweight clubs with a close-range header 13 minutes from time.

Kylian Mbappe was largely subdued as his quest to become a European champion before leaving the French capital in the summer suffered a setback.

Sebastien Haller’s late goal gave Borussia Dortmund a lifeline as they lost 2-1 against Atletico Madrid in Spain in the night’s other tie.

Atletico took early charge with Rodrigo de Paul scoring after just four minutes, and it looked bleak for Dortmund when Samuel Lino added a second in the 32nd minute.

But Haller struck nine minutes from the end to set up an intriguing second leg in Germany, although it could have been even better for Dortmund as Julian Brandt’s stoppage-time header came crashing back off the crossbar.

v’s deflected second-half goal helped Middlesbrough claim a 2-2 draw at Hull but a point apiece does little to boost either side’s Sky Bet Championship play-off hopes.

Emmanuel Latte Lath followed up a brace in Boro’s 2-0 win over Swansea on Saturday with an early goal at the MKM Stadium but Jaden Philogene’s cross-cum-shot drew Hull level just before the half hour.

Middlesbrough goalkeeper Seny Dieng played Lewis O’Brien into trouble which allowed Jean Michael Seri to put the Tigers deservedly in the lead ahead of half-time but Azaz had the final say, albeit after his strike took a crucial final touch off Alfie Jones before nestling in the goal.

Both teams sit six points adrift of sixth-placed Norwich with Middlesbrough in ninth, one place ahead of Hull, who have a game in hand over their two rivals.

This was a missed opportunity for both sides, even if Middlesbrough extended their unbeaten run to eight matches and it was the visitors who stormed out of the traps after kick-off was delayed by a quarter of an hour due to heavy traffic in the area.

Hull’s defenders were caught on their heels and paid their price as Latte Lath bagged his sixth goal in his last eight matches.

Having taken six minutes to score in the reverse fixture, which Boro lost 2-1 in December, Latte Lath needed just four this time after stealing in behind a high line and steering beyond Ryan Allsop from an acute angle.

Hull gradually warmed to their task and were unfortunate Abdus Omur slipped at the vital moment in front of goal as his miskick sailed wide while Jacob Greaves’ header was clawed away by Dieng as Middlesbrough were hemmed into their own half.

Hull’s persistence was rewarded as the influential Philogene delivered a teasing ball that seemed to elude Ozan Tufan at the back post before sailing into the net.

While Hull awarded the 29th-minute goal to a celebrating Tufan, it was officially given to Philogene.

Luke Ayling headed off his line following Omur’s chip as Hull continued to pour forward but they were given a helping hand four minutes before half-time.

Dieng’s attempt to play out from the back backfired spectacularly as Seri nudged O’Brien off the ball on the edge of his own area before lashing into the top corner.

Despite being outplayed for most of the first half, Middlesbrough might have drawn level at the start of the second as Jonny Howson’s thunderous effort was palmed by Allsop into the path of Latte Lath, who got into a tangle and could not slot in the rebound.

Howson at the other end made a desperate intervention to block Seri’s goal-bound effort while Regan Slater drilled across the face of goal and wide as Hull looked to give themselves some breathing room.

Their inability to do so came back to haunt them as they were hit on the break in the 71st minute.

Azaz exchanged passes with Isaiah Jones before bearing down on goal and his shot ricocheted off Jones and over Allsop as Middlesbrough drew level.

Omur might have nicked victory for Hull in the closing stages after springing the offside trap and going clean through but he was denied by the legs of Dieng.

Barcelona seized the initiate in their Champions League quarter-final with Paris St Germain after Andreas Christensen’s header secured a 3-2 win from a thrilling first leg at Parc des Princes.

Substitute Christensen, who won the competition with Chelsea in 2021, nodded home an Ilkay Gundogan corner just two minutes after coming off the bench to add to Raphinha’s double.

PSG trailed at the break following Raphinha’s opener but looked well placed to take a lead to Spain next week when quick-fire strikes from former Barca forward Ousmane Dembele and Vitinha turned a topsy-turvy tie in their favour early in the second period.

Luis Enrique’s Ligue 1 hosts hit the woodwork either side of Raphinha’s second before Christensen settled an engrossing encounter between two heavyweight clubs.

Kylian Mbappe was largely subdued as his quest to become a European champion before leaving the French capital in the summer suffered a setback.

With former PSG and Barcelona forward Ronaldinho and France manager Didier Deschamps among those watching from the sold-out stands, the hosts had the better of the cagey opening exchanges.

Yet the visitors grew into the contest and went closest to an early breakthrough.

PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was forced to race out of his box to deny Raphinha before Nuno Mendes cleared Robert Lewandowski’s goal-bound header off the line following Gundogan’s corner.

Mbappe had made little impact at that stage but suddenly came to life, culminating in Kang-In Lee stinging the palms of visiting keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Gianluigi Donnarumma endured a shaky start to the match, particularly from crosses, and he failed to convince as Barcelona snatched the lead eight minutes before the break.

A flowing move which began deep in Barca territory led to the Italy keeper diving at the feet of Lewandowski following a dangerous delivery from 16-year-old Lamine Yamal but his slight fingertip touch fell kindly for Raphinha to fire his first Champions League goal high into the unguarded net.

PSG boss Enrique was the last man to lead Barcelona to Champions League glory – in 2015 – and he was left with plenty to ponder at the end of an underwhelming first half for the hosts.

The Spanish coach’s half-time team talk clearly did the trick as PSG raced out of the blocks in devastating fashion.

Dembele, who left Barca last summer having cost almost £100million from Borussia Dortmund in 2017, seized on a loose ball in the away team’s 18-yard box and chopped his way past Frenkie de Jong to lash a powerful left-footed effort into the roof of the net.

Vitinha turned the tie on its head just three minutes later, taking a touch to control a precise pass from Fabian Ruiz before calmly slipping the ball beyond Ter Stegen.

Momentum was firmly with the home side and shell-shocked Barca were fortunate not to fall further behind in the 55th minute when Bradley Barcola’s effort flicked the top of the crossbar after brushing the fingertips of Ter Stegen.

PSG were left counting the cost of that near miss just seven minutes later when the away side drew level.

Donnarumma conceded possession with a poor clearance and Barca substitute Pedri made an instant impact with an inch-perfect lofted pass which was expertly dispatched on the volley by Brazil forward Raphinha.

Dembele fired against the right post as PSG pushed to regain the lead before decisively falling behind again 13 minutes from time.

Corners had been a problem for the home side all evening and the unmarked Christensen took advantage by heading home Gundogan’s inviting delivery from inside the six-yard box.

West Brom beat already-relegated Rotherham 2-0 at The Hawthorns to consolidate their place in the Championship play-offs.

Brandon Thomas-Asante and John Swift secured the win as the Baggies took full advantage of slip-ups by the chasing pack.

The major talking point came in the lead up to Swift’s goal from the penalty spot. Referee Geoff Eltringham adjudged defender Lee Peltier to have handled the ball despite clearly being outside of the penalty area.

Rotherham initially negated Albion’s efforts to make an early breakthrough. Swift had an opportunity when he met Tom Fellows’ low centre from the right but he guided his effort over the bar.

Thomas-Asante then was played in, over the top, by Swift, but the striker forced his shot wide from a tight angle.

West Brom went ahead midway through the first half. Celtic loanee Mikey Johnston sent Adam Reach racing down the left and he delivered a sharp low ball for Thomas-Asante, who could not miss from a couple of yards out.

Rotherham, having fallen behind, might have allowed the floodgates to open but they themselves began to play with more purpose.

Hakeem Odoffin sent a deep cross from the right which Cafu ambitiously met on the volley but ultimately hammered his half chance well over the bar.

West Brom doubled their lead in first-half stoppage time, however, in the most controversial of circumstances. Thomas-Asante leathered a shot from around 25 yards out which appeared goalbound, only for the ball to strike Peltier.

Referee Eltringham paused for a moment before pointing to the spot – despite Peltier appearing to be a number of yards outside of the penalty area.

The decision was greeted with disbelief by The Hawthorns and understandable bemusement by Rotherham, who had assistant head coach Rob Kelly booked for his protests. Swift duly converted to hand the hosts a half-time cushion.

Rotherham returned to the field undeterred and so easily could have pulled one back immediately when Sebastian Revan burst into the penalty area and laid the ball off for his captain Oliver Rathbone, who fizzed a shot just wide of Alex Palmer’s post.

Revan himself then tested Palmer but the Millers were grateful to their own keeper Viktor Johansson, who stopped Thomas-Asante adding to West Brom’s tally after he was superbly played in by Johnston.

The hosts’ top scorer then blazed an effort over the bar from six yards out in what was his final act before he made way for the returning Josh Maja in the closing stages.

Derby’s push for automatic promotion to the Championship took a hit after they drew 0-0 away at mid-table Wycombe.

The Rams, who have three matches remaining, stay in second but sit just two points ahead of Bolton, who have a game in hand.

The visitors nearly took the lead in the opening two minutes when a Ryan Tafazolli header almost crept past his own goalkeeper, Franco Ravizzoli.

This started an onslaught of Derby attacks as Corey Blackett-Taylor missed an open goal from a Conor Washington cross inside six minutes.

The latter then had his attempt blocked by Jack Grimmer 10 minutes later before Nathaniel Mendez-Laing’s resulting corner nearly snuck in, but Ravizzoli tipped the set-piece over.

Wycombe had several chances but nothing that tested Joe Wildsmith in the Rams goal as Beryly Lubala and Kieran Sadlier fired their attempts wide of the mark.

The second half was on a knife-edge, as Joe Low and Gideon Kodua had Wycombe’s best attempts, with Conor Hourihane and James Collins going close for Derby in the final few moments but to no avail.

Swansea eased any lingering relegation concerns by beating Stoke 3-0 to leave the Potters hovering perilously above the Championship drop zone.

Liam Cullen poked Jamie Paterson’s cross beyond Daniel Iversen to put Swansea ahead in the 19th minute before Matt Grimes doubled the hosts’ lead after 53 minutes with a penalty after Luke McNally tripped Ollie Cooper.

Josh Key capped off a fine victory for Luke Williams’ men with his second goal of the campaign after 73 minutes as Swansea claimed a first win in four, ending Stoke’s three-game unbeaten run and leaving them three points above the bottom three.

The Swans started on the front foot as former Stoke defender Josh Tymon teed up Jay Fulton who drilled well wide.

The hosts should have gone ahead in the 13th minute as Paterson left Ki-Jana Hoever spinning before picking out Fulton who could only rifle against the post from 10 yards.

But Swansea did take the lead soon after following a quickly taken free-kick.

Captain Grimes fed Paterson who had acres of space to cross to Cullen who poked home his seventh of the season from close range.

Cullen had a chance to double his side’s lead moments later when Grimes intercepted Michael Rose’s wayward clearance, although the Welshman could only volley over from the edge of the 18-yard box.

Stoke struggled to threaten in the torrid south Wales rain, with Wouter Burger heading wide from Million Manhoef’s corner just before the half-hour mark.

The Potters thought they had equalised in bizarre fashion just seconds later though when Rose chipped into the Swansea box.

Goalkeeper Carl Rushworth gathered the ball before losing control after an unintentional collision with Niall Ennis who duly poked into the net, although the goal was swiftly disallowed by referee Keith Stroud.

After a slow start, Steven Schumacher’s men found a foothold in the contest, with Manhoef flashing an effort wide.

And they spurned a fine chance to level proceedings in the dying seconds of the first half when Ennis played Manhoef through on goal, although Harry Darling recovered to force the Dutchman to fire wide from an acute angle.

They were ruthlessly punished for not taking their chances as Swansea doubled their lead with a penalty after the break.

McNally tripped Cooper on the edge of the area, and Grimes stepped up to rifle into the roof of the net from the spot.

Cullen almost got his second of the night from a well-worked corner routine minutes later, although his deflected effort trickled inches wide.

But Swansea got their third late on as Jamal Lowe danced up the left wing, teeing up Key whose first touch took him beyond Rose before unleashing a fierce effort into the net.

Ipswich missed out on the chance to take over at the Sky Bet Championship summit but did move up to second after they were held to a goalless draw at home to Watford.

After promotion rivals Leicester and Leeds dropped points on Tuesday, victory for Kieran McKenna’s men would have been the perfect tonic to Saturday’s 1-0 loss at bitter foes Norwich.

However, Tom Cleverley’s Watford proved stubborn opponents and Town had to settle for a point, which does lift them above Leeds with four games left in the battle to secure automatic promotion.

Ipswich were eager to bounce back from their East Anglian derby defeat and McKenna made four changes but watched his team almost fall behind after eight minutes.

Watford youngster Yaser Asprilla tried his luck from by the halfway line although, much to the relief of goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky, it sailed a few inches over.

Town dominated possession and created their first chance when the recalled Harry Clarke burst forward and passed into Kieffer Moore, who teed up Nathan Broadhead but his low effort was saved by Daniel Bachmann.

Moore went close himself after 28 minutes when Kayden Jackson raced away down the right but his cross was swept wide by the Bournemouth loanee.

Ipswich impressively fashioned another chance eight minutes later when Hutchinson passed out wide to Broadhead, whose left-footed strike hit the inside of the post and rolled across the goal line to safety.

The Hornets were on the ropes and the next opportunity for the hosts was inadvertently blocked by Broadhead, who got in the way of a Jack Taylor shot.

After Bachmann had watched Ipswich lay siege to his goal, the Austrian stopper sprung into action three minutes before half-time with a superb save to deny a flying header by Moore from Clarke’s cross.

It ensured it was goalless at the break but Watford provided a reminder of their threat early in the second period when Asprilla sent in a dipping effort that Hladky could only parry away.

McKenna had seen enough and made a triple substitution with 26 minutes left.

The tension around Portman Road was palpable and gaps started to open up but Hladky thwarted Jamal Lewis’ low effort before Ipswich captain Sam Morsy slid in to deny Ismael Kone’s follow-up.

Town substitute Ali Al-Hamadi had a late shot deflected wide before Watford almost stole the points but Hladky batted away Edo Kayembe’s speculative effort deep into stoppage-time.

Tommy Conway netted a first-half brace as Bristol City increased Blackburn’s relegation fears with a thumping 5-0 Championship win at Ashton Gate.

The striker capitalised on a bad error by Dominic Hyam to race clear and shoot low past Aynsley Pears for his 10th goal of the season in the 24th minute.

Seven minutes later Conway sent Pears the wrong way from the penalty spot after a mistake by Callum Brittain had led to Hyam bringing down Mark Sykes inside the box.

Substitute Anis Mehmeti capitalised on yet more weak defending by Hyam to fire in the third in the 73rd minute and another replacement, Nahki Wells, drilled home a 78th-minute penalty after Blackburn substitute Kyle McFadzean had handled.

Wells completed the rout with a stoppage time tap-in from Harry Cornick’s cross and the thrashing left hapless Rovers just three points above the drop zone with four games to play.

City head coach Liam Manning made three changes, bringing in Ross McCrorie, Joe Williams and Conway for Matty James, Mehmeti and Wells.

They faced a Blackburn side featuring goal machine Sammie Szmodics, eager to show Ashton Gate fans his skills after a disappointing spell as a City player in 2019.

The hosts made a blistering start, Scott Twine twice going close in the opening six minutes. The midfielder shot wide from a short Haydon Roberts free-kick and then had an acrobatic volley blocked.

Blackburn flickered as an attacking force as City goalkeeper Max O’Leary dealt with two tame efforts from Dilan Markanday and one from Joe Rankin-Costello.

But the home side looked more threatening and Conway’s opening goal came as no surprise. They could have been out of sight at the break as Rovers continued to make sloppy defensive errors.

After the penalty, Conway was presented with a hat-trick chance by Harry Pickering’s short back-pass, but was denied by a sprawling Pears save.

Sykes had chipped wide when clear through the middle and Manning’s men looked altogether sharper than their mistake-prone opponents.

Blackburn head coach John Eustace reacted by making four half-time substitutions, sending on John Buckley, McFadzean, Andy Moran and Ben Chrisene for Markanday, Tyrhys Dolan, Scott Wharton and Rankin-Costello.

Still the next goal effort of note came from the home side after 69 minutes when Jason Knight shot wide at the end of a slick move.

A better chance fell to Szmodics two minutes later, but he could only shoot wide after good control on the edge of the box. Manning responded by sending on Mehmeti, Wells and Cornick for Twine, Sykes and Conway.

Within seconds Mehmeti had settled any doubt about the outcome and Wells’ two late goals put the icing on the cake of City’s biggest Championship win of the season.

Birmingham missed the chance to climb out of the Championship relegation zone as Josh Bowler’s 65th-minute goal snatched victory for Cardiff and left the Blues a point from safety.

Gary Rowett’s side had the opportunity to win successive home matches and jump above Sheffield Wednesday and Huddersfield in the table, but Bowler’s fourth goal of the season instead left them second bottom with just four games to play.

The home side had just one shot on target in the match as they struggled to create many clear-cut chances against their mid-table opponents.

Birmingham chairman Tom Wagner was in attendance after the news on Tuesday that the club plan to leave St Andrew’s for a new stadium by August 2029.

He witnessed an uneventful start to the game before Blues midfielder Juninho Bacuna’s effort deflected behind for a corner after 10 minutes.

That sparked the game into life as Koji Miyoshi’s low strike hit a post for the hosts before Cardiff’s Yakou Meite tested John Ruddy, with the goalkeeper gathering the shot at the second attempt.

Miyoshi’s reverse pass to Bacuna engineered another chance for Birmingham but the midfielder’s effort was comfortably claimed by Ethan Horvath.

Ruddy then had to make another save to deny Meite. Karlan Grant charged up the pitch and Meite took the ball off the winger on the edge of the box and struck a powerful effort on goal, which the goalkeeper pushed clear.

The hosts came close at the other end soon after when Jordan James curled a first-time strike narrowly wide of both the stretching arm of Horvath and the post.

Birmingham started the second half brightly but lacked a cutting edge in the final third.

A well-drilled Cardiff outfit was frustrating the hosts and the Bluebirds looked happy to play on the counter-attack.

That plan duly worked when Bowler fired past Ruddy at his near post from half-time substitute Rubin Colwill’s cross to give them the lead.

The pressure intensified on Blues to get a goal and Rowett made a triple substitution to try and change his sides fortunes, but Ruddy had to deny Grant to stop the visitors doubling their lead.

Grant then saw an effort deflect just over the crossbar.

Rowett threw on two more subs in the closing stages as his side chased a late leveller, but Cardiff held on for all three points.

Peterborough boosted their automatic promotion hopes with a 3-0 triumph that sent Port Vale plunging back into the relegation zone.

The hosts ended a frustrating first half on a high when Joel Randall’s 25-yard thunderbolt sailed past helpless keeper Connor Ripley – courtesy of a double deflection off Vale men Rhys Walters and Alex Iacovitti – to hand them the lead seconds before the break.

Randall, Ephron Mason-Clark, Ricky-Jade Jones and Kwame Poku had all squandered good chances before Ripley pulled off a fine save to deny Archie Collins, but the following corner – taken short by captain Harrison Burrows to Randall – led to Posh hitting the front.

Burrows followed up his EFL Trophy final heroics with another goal as Posh doubled their lead 11 minutes in the second half.

The captain struck for the 12th time this season when he sent Ripley the wrong way from the spot after Ryan Loft’s pull on Josh Knight.

And Burrows was again involved when Posh put the result beyond doubt in the 86th minute as his left-wing cross was headed into his own net by the unfortunate Iacovitti.

Vale fell back into the bottom four on goal difference as they failed to manage an attempt on target until second half stoppage time when substitute Uche Ikpeazu’s blast was spectacularly tipped over by Jed Steer.

Jarrad Branthwaite says there is no point “wasting energy” by dwelling on the situation following Everton’s latest Premier League points deduction.

The Toffees were hit by their second points deduction of the season, losing a further two points, for breaching the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.

Everton, who were docked six points earlier this season for breaking PSR rules in the assessment period up to the 2021-22 season, have been handed another penalty for the three-year cycle to 2022-23 after admitting a breach of £16.6million.

The punishment drops them one place to 16th in the Premier League table, two points above the relegation zone with a game in hand on three of the four clubs below them.

An independent commission was unable to decide on whether there was a further breach relating to costs of £6.5m. That case will be heard at an unspecified date and the PA news agency understands any resulting penalty is likely to be applied next season.

“It’s obviously a bit of a downer on what’s been a positive couple of games,” Everton defender Branthwaite told Sky Sports News.

“But it’s the same as when we got the first points deduction, there’s not a lot we can do about it.

“We can only put in performances on the pitch and try to rectify that by winning games from now until the end of the season to keep us safe.

“If you sit and dwell on it there’s no point just wasting energy. We’ve got to focus on ourselves as a team and what we can do from now until the end of the season to win as many games as possible to keep us in the Premier League.”

Branthwaite’s team-mate Dwight McNeil added: “We had a meeting and we got told we’d had two points deducted but it happened not so long ago and the next four games after that we were excellent.

“I think it helps with the experience we’ve got in the group. A lot of us have been in this position before, so that always helps.

“We never wanted to be here but we are and now we’ve got to get ourselves out of it and we are confident we can do that.”

Everton are back in Premier League action on Monday when they face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Aberdeen have claimed VAR is having a negative impact on Scottish football after discovering officials effectively “guessed” that their stoppage-time winner at Livingston should be disallowed following a technical failure.

The Dons saw their hopes of a cinch Premiership top-six finish disappear when Bojan Miovski’s goal was disallowed for an offside against Angus MacDonald in the build-up.

Aberdeen argued their “relative public silence” on VAR issues was “no longer tenable” following talks with the Scottish Football Association on the decision and hearing transcripts from the match officials.

The talks revealed the video assistants were unable to calibrate the lines because of a camera failure, instead freezing the footage to determine by eye, as is allowed by the VAR protocols. Video assistant Matthew MacDermid decided MacDonald was offside.

The SFA later produced retrospective footage to prove the right decision had been made in the end.

An Aberdeen statement read: “The Scottish FA accepted there is no conceivable way the VAR could tell definitively the deepest position of Livingston midfielder Daniel McKay’s body, because from the only angle available – the 18-yard box camera on the Main Stand side – the lower half of McKay’s body is completely obscured from view, blocked by other players.

“Even if his full body was visible, it’s impossible to determine who was closest to the goal line with no on-pitch ‘markers’.

“Therefore, it was acknowledged by all in attendance at the meeting that the VARs had to effectively guess on what that position might have been based on the limited information available to them, and that was the basis on which to overrule the on-field call of the assistant referee, who did not raise his flag.

“It is our strong belief that in such an instance, and for the integrity of the game, the match officials should stick with their original on-field decision without the strength of evidence to overturn that and essentially re-referee the passage of play.

“This course of action was chosen ahead of asking the referee himself to look at the freeze frame and make a determination, which is permitted under the protocols when it’s a matter of opinion rather than factual, or more appropriately, in absence of a definitive outcome from the camera, sticking with the on-field decision, and giving the benefit of the doubt.”

The club added: “What this situation demonstrates, in our opinion, is that the version of VAR that Scottish football has, or more accurately, can afford, is not suitable for the purpose in which it is intended.

“It perfectly highlights the limitations in the technology, the inappropriate implementation, the consistency of decision-making, and the negative impact on the overall experience for the match-going supporter.

“This is, of course, not an issue that we believe is in any way exclusive to Aberdeen FC.

“We are not being partisan because we believe a decision, or at least a process, has not been at all effective at the weekend.

“We acknowledge there have been occasions where we ourselves have been fortunate to have benefitted from some of the observations and limitations raised.”

Aberdeen pledged to continue playing an active role in the ongoing review of VAR’s use in Scotland and try to improve the output.

They added that they did not believe VAR is “enhancing the game in this country”.

The SFA later stated that Hawkeye’s review confirmed that the relevant camera had suffered a “loss of calibration”.

A statement added: “During the review, Hawkeye were able to reprocess the data through their system and draw the calibrated offside lines from the disallowed goal, which showed Angus MacDonald to be in an offside position.

“The VAR made the decision using the technology that was available and this decision was validated by Hawkeye’s retrospective recalibration conducted as part of their review.”