Norwich City climbed to within one place of the Championship play-off spots following a 3-2 victory away at Derby County and a hat-trick from Borja Sainz.

The result ended a run of nine straight home wins in the league for Derby, and it was the first time they have been beaten at Pride Park since February. Norwich, meanwhile, have now won three of their last four matches.

Norwich took the lead in the first half through Sainz in controversial circumstances, with the ball looking as if it had gone out of play during the build-up to the goal.

But Derby would not go down without a fight, equalising through Craig Forsyth on his 300th career appearance, as he fired past Angus Gunn from eight yards.

Just five minutes later, Norwich were back in front with Sainz hitting a bouncing ball from outside of the box and the Spaniard secured his hat-trick with another three minutes from time.

Derby got one back in stoppage time through Corey Blackett-Taylor, but were unable to force an equaliser.

Elsewhere, Sheffield Wednesday beat league leaders West Bromwich Albion 3-2 at Hillsborough to win for the first time in the league since the opening day.

Danny Rohl’s side were one up after nine minutes, with Darnell Furlong deflecting Marvin Johnson's effort past his goalkeeper. Josh Windass doubled their lead in the 23rd minute.

The Baggies got back into it after the hour, with Josh Maja heading in from a deep cross for his seventh goal of the season, and substitute Alex Mowatt dragged them level in the 84th minute.

But two minutes later, Anthony Musaba put Wednesday back in front for a lead they would maintain for the remainder of the match. The hosts climb to 16th, two points above the bottom three.

Blackburn Rovers maintained their 100% home record in the league with a 2-0 victory over QPR, who had Jonathan Varane, the half-brother of former Real Madrid and Manchester United defender Raphael Varane, sent off in first-half stoppage time for a late lunge on Danny Batth.

John Eustace's side struck twice in the second half to ensure their strong form rolled on.

Sunderland edged past local rivals Sunderland 1-0 at the Stadium of Light on Saturday to return to winning ways in the Championship.

The Black Cats' four-game winning run to begin the season was ended by Plymouth Argyle last weekend, but they responded well on home soil.

Local lad Chris Rigg, aged just 17, earned Sunderland Wear-Tees bragging rights with an outrageous backheel after 24 minutes.

Middlesbrough had chances but lacked a cutting edge as Sunderland made it three clean sheets from three home league games this season.

The win lifted Regis Le Bris' men back into top spot in the early Championship standings ahead of West Brom facing Plymouth later in the day.

Elsewhere in the early kick-offs, Johannes Thorup earned his first home league win as Norwich City manager in a 4-1 victory over Watford.

The Canaries' only other win this season came on their travels at Coventry City last month, but they were good value for their latest triumph.

Callum Doyle's long-range opener was cancelled out by Ryan Andrews' strike, before Borja Sainz restored the hosts' lead just before half-time.

Marcelino Nunez added a third nine minutes into the second period and Ben Chrisene made certain of the three points late on.

QPR drew 1-1 with London rivals Millwall at Loftus Road, meanwhile, with both sides remaining in the bottom half of the table with one win apiece.

Duncan Watmore rounded off a nice team move to put Millwall ahead after 34 minutes, but Michael Frey poked home a leveller four minutes later and neither side could find a winner.

Everton's miserable start to the new season continued as they were knocked out of the EFL Cup by Southampton, who experienced spot-kick joy after their penalty pain against Manchester United.

Sean Dyche's Toffees have lost their past two Premier League matches despite leading 2-0 in each, and they let slip another lead on Tuesday.

Abdoulaye Doucoure's opener was cancelled out by Saints' Taylor Harwood-Bellis, with a 1-1 draw taking the third-round tie to penalties at Goodison Park.

Southampton, like Everton, are pointless in the league after Cameron Archer's spot-kick miss in their latest defeat at home to United on Saturday proved costly.

But this time Saints succeeded from 12 yards, advancing after a 6-5 shoot-out win, with Ashley Young the only man to fail from the spot when Alex McCarthy saved the final kick.

That was one of three shoot-outs among Tuesday's cup matches, with Preston North End remarkably winning a marathon contest against Fulham.

Following another 1-1 draw, Preston were 16-15 victors on penalties as Timothy Castagne blazed the decisive effort over the crossbar after 17 attempts apiece.

Stoke City and Fleetwood Town also drew 1-1, before the Potters triumphed.

Elsewhere, Eberechi Eze netted the winner against former club Queens Park Rangers, with Eddie Nketiah also on target for the first time for Crystal Palace in a 2-1 victory.

Brentford came from behind to beat Leyton Orient 3-1, while Sheffield United defeated former boss Steve Bruce and Blackpool 1-0.

Marti Cifuentes says there were "three big moments" that decided Queens Park Rangers' 2-1 win over Luton Town in the Championship on Friday.

The Hatters took the lead in the 18th minute thanks to Jimmy Dunne's own goal, but a quickfire turnaround in the second half secured the three points for Cifuentes' side.

Michael Frey was the standout as he set Nicolas Madsen up for the equaliser in the 59th minute before scoring the winner himself just three minutes later with a wonderful first-time volley.

It is QPR's first win of the season, following back-to-back draws against Sheffield United and Plymouth Argyle, while Luton are still without a victory since dropping back into the second division.

Cifuentes was pleased with the fighting spirit shown by his side, pointing out the key moments that helped them to put their first three points on the board.

"There were three big moments in the game. Good start from our game, but then a goal and that changes the whole momentum," he told BBC Sport.

"We know they are very good on set-pieces. They are a big team, very physical. From that moment, we struggled to get out of the high press as they went man-to-man all over the pitch, and we couldn't create those small connections.

"Definitely until the beginning of the second half we struggled; Paul [Nardi] keeps us in the game with a big save.

"So, then we scored for the draw, and that was the third moment in the game. Not only with the goals, but we had the dominance until the last five minutes, even when they pushed.

"When we couldn't beat the high pressure, we invested to find the right moment and the first goal showed that."

Plymouth Argyle battled back from conceding an early goal to claim a 1-1 draw away to QPR in the Championship, despite finishing the game with just nine players.

They endured a dismal start after forward Michael Frey headed past goalkeeper Conor Hazard from a corner to put the home side a goal ahead after just three minutes.

But Wayne Rooney's side rallied and equalised in the 28th minute through a magnificent long-range strike from Morgan Whittaker, which was their only shot on target.

The Plymouth attacker had originally played a misplaced pass, which ricocheted off a QPR defender and landed straight back at his feet. The 23-year-old hit the ball first time with his left foot and it rocketed into the top right corner of the goal.

But things got worse for Argyle just a minute later as Adam Forshaw was sent off for a second booking following a late challenge on Jimmy Dunne.

Five minutes into the second half, Sam Field hit the far post with a header and a QPR onslaught followed for the remainder of the match. 

Yet Plymouth stood firm to clinch their second point of the season. Goalkeeper Conor Hazard made nine saves, and despite Freddie Issaka's late red card further diminishing Argyle's numbers, QPR could not find a way through.

Elsewhere, Bristol City drew 1-1 at home to Coventry City.

Liam Manning's side took the lead in first-half stoppage time through a stunning George Tanner volley from a corner.

But they were unable to keep the lead despite controlling large parts of the match, with Kasey Palmer equalising for Coventry in the 76th minute.

Hull City, meanwhile, drew their third league game out of three this season, playing out a goalless stalemate at home to Millwall.

It took 34 minutes for the Tigers to have their first shot on target, although Millwall had the first big chance of the game through George Savile.

Hull could not convert possession into clear-cut chances - Chris Bedia came closest in the 77th minute, but was denied by an acrobatic Lukas Jensen save to keep it goalless. Both sides remain winless.

Brenden Aaronson scored a 95th-minute equaliser for Leeds United as they began their Championship campaign with a thrilling 3-3 draw versus Portsmouth at Elland Road.

Aaronson, who spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Union Berlin, squeezed his finish into the bottom-left corner deep into stoppage time to deny John Mousinho's newly promoted visitors a dream start to the season.

Pascal Struijk's early penalty gave Leeds the lead but they were quickly pegged back by Elias Sorensen's leveller, and Portsmouth then inched ahead on two occasions.

Callum Lang's stunning strike from distance put them 2-1 up shortly before half-time, only for Wilfried Gnonto to drag Leeds level just 54 seconds into the second half, beating Will Norris with a clever reverse finish.

Leeds dominated for long periods and should have killed the game off, finishing with 22 shots to Portsmouth's five and 39 touches in the penalty area to the visitors' six.

Daniel Farke's hosts were almost condemned to a shock defeat by Lang's 92nd-minute penalty, conceded cheaply by Jayden Bogle, but Aaronson had other ideas.

Elsewhere, West Brom fought from behind for a 3-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road, with Josh Maja scoring a hat-trick.

Lucas Andersen put Marti Cifuentes' hosts ahead after 16 minutes, but Maja soon hit back with a near-post header before adding two more close-range finishes after the break.

Maja's treble made him the first Albion player to score a hat-trick in their opening game of a league season since Alf Bentley accomplished the feat in 1913-14.

Norwich City, who joined Leeds and West Brom in falling short in last season's play-offs, endured a miserable start to their campaign as they went down 2-0 to newly promoted Oxford United.

Mark Harris cut inside from the left before squeezing a finish through Angus Gunn's legs for 1-0, then Cameron Brannagan made the points safe with a side-footed finish in the 58th minute.

Michael Carrick's Middlesbrough also got off to a winning start, beating Swansea City 1-0 at the Riverside Stadium as Emmanuel Latte Lath continued his fine run in front of goal.

Latte Lath converted from the penalty spot 25 minutes in after Azeem Abdulai felled the marauding Isiah Jones, netting in a seventh straight Championship game.

He has nine goals in total throughout that run, which is the joint-longest scoring streak by any player since the Championship's 2004 rebrand, alongside Charlie Austin in 2012, Jordan Rhodes in 2013, and Aleksandar Mitrovic in 2021.

Yves Bissouma and Dane Scarlett were on target as Tottenham continued their pre-season preparations with a 2-0 victory over Queens Park Rangers.

Ange Postecoglou's side made it two wins in the space of a week, following their resounding 5-1 rout of Hearts on Wednesday.

QPR carried the greater attacking threat during the first half. Rayan Kolli's rasping 25-yard effort was tipped onto the crossbar by Brandon Austin, while Michael Frey was denied by the offside flag.

However, Spurs broke through four minutes before the break. Bissouma played a neat one-two with Dejan Kulusevski and glided away from a couple of challenges, before rounding Paul Nardi and scoring.

Son Heung-min and Timo Werner went close to doubling the lead before half-time, while Nardi denied Mikey Moore and James Maddison in the second half.

However, Tottenham did put the game to bed with three minutes remaining as Scarlett, moments after coming on as a substitute, turned home Moore's cross at the far post.

QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.

Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.

Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.

Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.

QPR boss Gareth Ainsworth revealed that he told Sinclair Armstrong he would score his first goal for the club before the young Irish striker came up trumps in a 2-1 win at Cardiff.

The 20-year-old Armstrong opened his Rangers account before charging clear to set up Kenneth Paal’s second-half clincher, with Ike Ugbo’s open-goal finish nothing more than a consolation for Cardiff.

“I told Sinclair in the hotel this morning that he was going to score his first goal and the beaming smile on his face gave me confidence, never mind him,” said Ainsworth.

“He’s a man of few words. He just said: ‘Cheers gaffer’. He told me after the game: ‘You were right gaffer’.

“He’s a work in progress but I believe we’ve got a real diamond. He’s young and come out of a lower level in Ireland.

“He’s not had enough games in the Championship yet, but he will get there and he’s like a 100 metres sprinter.

“He’s the quickest player I’ve ever worked with and is going to cause serious problems for defences.”

Ainsworth’s position has come under scrutiny after failing to stop QPR’s slide following his move from Wycombe in February.

QPR narrowly avoided relegation from the Sky Bet Championship last season and lost 4-0 at Watford on the opening day of this campaign after conceding four first-half goals.

“I didn’t give them the best chance of being successful (at Watford) and it’s been a big week – and a big day – for me,” said Ainsworth.

“I thought ‘how do I get the best out of the players I’ve got?’ rather than thinking what’s got me success over the last 10 years.

“This is new now, it’s not what I’ve had, and we had to change.

“There is going to be some pain before we get better, but I can see the start now and I want to build.”

There was plenty of excitement around Cardiff with Aaron Ramsey, having returned to the club in the summer, making his first appearance at home since 2011.

But new Cardiff manager Erol Bulut said: “Many players were nervous – I don’t understand why. Maybe it is the first game in front of our fans. But that is not a reason to be nervous.

“We created enough to at least score a second goal and get a point. But two individual mistakes in the game meant the opponents led 2-0 and it’s not easy to come back to draw from there.

“We have to keep working on our mistakes. Also some players have to be much more active.

“From some players, it’s not enough. They have to give a better performance.

“Many players still have in their heads the last two years, how the Championship was for them.

“I try to push it out of them, to believe in themselves and focus on our target.”

Queen’s Park maintained their perfect start to the new cinch Championship season with a 2-1 win over Arbroath at the City Stadium.

The Spiders, who won 2-1 at Inverness last week, made a positive start, with Dominic Thomas’ effort cleared off the line before on-loan Bayern Munich youngster Barry Hepburn opened his account in the 13th minute.

Arbroath looked to respond as Michael McKenna’s header was straight at the Queen’s Park keeper before at the other end, Ruari Paton had his goal in the 27th minute ruled out for offside following a counter-attack.

At the start of the second half, Arbroath defender Thomas O’Brien sent an effort just over the crossbar following a free-kick.

With 20 minutes left, the visitors were level when substitute Leighton McIntosh knocked the ball in following a goalmouth scramble.

Queen’s Park, though, were back in front just five minutes later after substitute Patrick Jarrett hit the post and a rebound was blocked, Paton was alert to slot in the loose ball.

QPR spoiled Aaron Ramsey’s Cardiff homecoming with a 2-1 success in the Sky Bet Championship.

Sinclair Armstrong – with his first QPR goal – and Kenneth Paal were on target to puncture Cardiff’s early-season optimism generated by the return of Wales captain Ramsey.

Ike Ugbo gave Cardiff hope 12 minutes from time with his second goal in as many league games, but the Bluebirds were left to rue efforts from Ramsey and Mark McGuinness coming back off the crossbar.

Ramsey’s last appearance on this ground in Cardiff colours came in February 2011, when on loan from Arsenal as he recovered from serious injury.

There was huge excitement as Ramsey led out a Cardiff side managed at home in the league for the first time by Erol Bulut, the former Fenerbahce head coach.

But the day belonged to Armstrong, a 20-year-old Irish striker who not only opened his QPR account in the first half but unselfishly set up Paal after 65 minutes.

QPR slumped to a 4-0 defeat at Watford on the opening weekend and boss Gareth Ainsworth had acted quickly to bolster his defence.

Steve Cook arrived from Nottingham Forest on Wednesday and the veteran centre-half went straight into the middle of a three-man defence.

QPR started brightly but Cardiff carried a goal threat when getting into forward positions.

Cardiff’s best chance of the first period came after 19 minutes when McGuinness headed goalwards for the swivelling Ugbo to send his shot wide.

QPR were playing the more cohesive football and Cook met Paal’s free-kick at the far post to force a smart save from Jak Alnwick.

Ilias Chair was wayward before Paul Smyth picked Callum O’Dowda’s pocket and found the sliding Armstrong, who made no mistake from a few yards.

Cardiff went close to an equaliser in first-half stoppage-time but Asmir Begovic got down well to turn Ryan Wintle’s 20-yard effort around a post.

There was more purpose about Cardiff straight after the restart as Ramsey played in O’Dowda and Morgan Fox made a fine stretching clearance.

Callum Robinson replaced the injured Ebou Adams but Cardiff struggled to make headway against resolute opponents.

QPR were lucky to survive when Ramsey found space on the edge of the penalty area and his effort clattered against the crossbar.

Cardiff kept the move alive and Begovic was quick off his line to smother Karlan Grant’s attempt.

QPR made the most of their good fortune within moments after Ramsey gave away possession and Armstrong, having evaded Dimitrios Goutas, raced down the right.

Armstrong did not panic as he scanned for support and his inviting ball was dispatched by Paal.

Cardiff set up a grandstand finish as Ramsey delivered a delightful pass to O’Dowda at the far post.

O’Dowda did superbly to keep the ball in play and lift it over Begovic and Ugbo tapped home.

Cardiff struck the crossbar again through McGuinness but 10 minutes of stoppage time eventually ran out on the Bluebirds.

Valerien Ismael kicked off his Watford reign in magnificent style with a 4-0 win over a hapless QPR at Vicarage Road.

The red-hot Hornets produced a swashbuckling first-half display which saw them score all their goals inside 43 minutes as Rangers showed why many have tipped them to struggle to stay up this season under Gareth Ainsworth.

The visitors, who were without first-choice centre-backs Jimmy Dunne and Jake Clarke-Salter due to injury, handed a full senior debut to Joe Gubbins alongside recent signing Morgan Fox and both struggled to contain a rampant home side.

It took just 33 seconds for the Hornets to open the scoring when Tom Dele-Bashiru slotted past Asmir Begovic after a sublime reverse pass from the impressive Imran Louza caught out the flat-footed R’s defence.

Watford went close to adding a second when Vakoun Bayo met a James Morris cross only for Begovic to claw away his goalbound header.

And Louza doubled the hosts’ lead with a curling effort from the edge of the box in the 20th minute.

Francisco Sierralta and Ken Sema both went close to scoring as Rangers kept conceding possession and found themselves under constant pressure from the home side.

That pressure finally paid off again when Matheus Martins darted in front of Paul Smyth to nod home Sema’s corner in the 38th minute.

The lively Bayo then made it 4-0 two minutes before half-time when he fired home at the back post from a low Sierralta cross, with the Rangers defence once again in disarray.

Bayo almost added a fifth in the seven minutes of first-half stoppage time after outpacing Fox to race on to a long ball over the top, but his lob landed on the top of the net.

QPR, who were booed off by a packed away end after a chastening opening period, saw beleaguered boss Ainsworth bring on Sinclair Armstrong and Stephen Duke-McKenna for the ineffective Smyth and Charlie Kelman.

Republic of Ireland under-21 international Armstrong should have pulled one back for the Hoops when he got in behind the Watford defence, but was unable to turn the ball into the net from a tight angle in what was Rangers’ only chance of note.

Almost immediately the Hornets went close to a fifth goal when the impressive Louza hit the crossbar from distance before making way in a triple substitution from Ismael to a well-deserved standing ovation from the home crowd.

Rangers did manage to stop the bleeding in the second half as Watford were denied by two late smart saves from Begovic but they slumped to the biggest defeat in a season opener since 2012 – a campaign that saw them relegated from the Premier League.

QPR have announced the departure of club captain Stefan Johansen after his contract was mutually terminated.

The 32-year-old joined the R’s on loan from Fulham in January 2021 before making a permanent move in the summer.

He made 88 appearances overall for the club.

Johansen told the club website: “There is no bad blood at all, I have had conversations with the club and I think it’s time to move on.

“It suits all parties that I am leaving now. I have had a great time but do wish that I could have achieved what I came here to do, which was promotion to the Premier League.

“From the moment (boss) Gareth (Ainsworth) walked through the door we got on really well. We respect each other and have a strong relationship.

“He is a great guy and I leave the club with him as a good friend.”

QPR director of football Les Ferdinand has stepped down from the role.

Ferdinand, 56, spent eight years as a player at the club and returned to Loftus Road in 2014, initially as head of football operations.

QPR were relegated from the Premier League in 2015 and have spent the last eight years in the Championship, narrowly avoiding relegation last season.

Ferdinand told the club’s official website: “This has not been an easy decision. My life is football, I love football and I want to stay in football, but I do feel this is the right time for me to step down from my position here.

“Everyone knows how special Queens Park Rangers is to me and it has been a privilege to be back at the club.

“There have been challenging times and I have had to make some very difficult decisions but every decision I have made has been with the best interests of the club at heart.”

QPR appointed Gareth Ainsworth as head coach in February after sacking Neil Critchley, who lasted just 12 games in the role.

Critchley had replaced Michael Beale, who left Loftus Road in November to become Rangers manager having guided QPR to seventh in the table.

QPR chairman Amit Bhatia added: “In an industry where individuals with genuine authenticity and integrity appear to be scarce, Les’ sincerity and honesty have always set him apart, and have made him so special and so valued by the board.”

Former Reggae Boyz head coach Paul Hall has been appointed interim manager of English Championship side Queens Park Rangers. Hall is stepping into the role following the departure of Michael Beale, who is taking the head coaching position of Scottish club Glasgow Rangers.

Prior to his appointment, Hall was the B-team manager at Loftus Road where he had spent more than a decade coaching from the U14 to U23 levels. He assumed the new role on Tuesday after Beale’s surprise exit on Monday after only six months on the job.

His first match, a friendly against Scottish Premier League side Livingston, saw QPR winning 2-1 in a behind closed doors encounter.

“It is really important I get this job right, the club is the most important thing here,” Hall told English media. “I’ve been here 10 years and seen a lot of managers come and go. But my focus now is just for us is to attack Burnley.”

QPR play Burnley on December 11.

“We need everyone to focus on it, not just the staff but the supporters too, because although these players are resilient, they need everyone to get behind this team as they have got what it takes.”

Hall represented the Jamaican national side in 48 matches between 1997 and 2003 scoring 14 goals. He was recently in charge as interim head coach during the latter stages of the Reggae Boyz failed World Cup campaign before he was replaced by Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrimmson.