Burnley moved to within a point of Championship leaders Sheffield United after beating the Blades 2-0 at Bramall Lane on an action-packed day on Boxing Day.
The result also saw Chris Wilder's side lose at home for the first time this season, with the Clarets winning consecutive games for the first time against Thursday's opponents.
Burnley took the lead two minutes before half-time when Bashir Humphreys' delivery was met at the back post by captain Josh Brownhill's curling header.
Zian Flemming doubled Burnley's lead eight minutes after the restart. After seeing his first free kick blocked, he shot in with the help of a deflection.
In the encounter between the EFL's two nastiest defenses, being clinical was crucial, and the Blades could not find a way past James Trafford.
Scott Parker's side were worthy of their victory, extending their unbeaten run to five games against Sheffield United and moving closer to the top of the standings.
At the other end of the table, Plymouth Argyle suffered another heavy defeat as Wayne Rooney suffered a 4-0 defeat to Frank Lampard's Coventry City.
The Sky Blues scored all their goals in the opening 45 minutes and piled more pressure on Argyle boss Rooney, with his side now two points adrift of safety after 22 games.
Tatsuhiro Sakamoto headed Coventry ahead with just five minutes to go before the recalled Josh Eccles fired the ball past Daniel Grimshaw from the edge of the penalty area.
Ephron Mason-Clark, who had set up Eccles for the opener, scored his fourth goal in his sixth game under Lampard with a fine finish that put the result beyond doubt.
Eccles then completed the first-half rout just before the break, with Plymouth's misery compounded late on when substitute Callum Wright was shown a straight red card.
At the Riverside Stadium, Sheffield Wednesday staged an incredible comeback to draw 3–3 with 10-man Middlesbrough, ending their losing run against them in the league.
Michael Carrick's side looked on course for a comfortable victory when Ben Doak's early goal and Finn Azaz's double put the hosts 3-0 up at half-time.
But the Owls began the turnaround after half-time as Svante Ingelsson and Josh Windass cut the deficit to one within nine minutes of the start of the second half.
Rav van den Berg was then sent off for a second bookable foul for Boro in the 55th minute, with Yan Valery heading Shea Charles' corner six minutes later.
Boro move out of the play-off places with this result, three points ahead of Wednesday in ninth place, but there is no doubt who will be more pleased with this result.
There was also a winning start for new Oxford United manager Gary Rowett, who oversaw a 3–2 win over Cardiff City to take them two points clear of the relegation zone.
In a first half of few chances, Mark Harris broke the deadlock as the Welsh striker fired home from close range following a moment of rare quality from the home side.
The hosts secured the result when Ciaron Brown scored a goal against his former side before Przemyslaw Placheta struck a sensational third.
But Cardiff handed Rowett a nerve-wracking final few minutes as substitute Cian Ashford took advantage of some poor marking in the Oxford penalty area.
Callum Robinson almost scored at the very end of the game, but it wasn't enough to save them from a defeat that put them in the middle of the relegation picture.
Harry Leonard's late equalizer secured a point for Blackburn Rovers, who shared the win with promotion rivals Sunderland and played out a 2-2 draw at Ewood Park.
Yuki Ohashi had given John Eustace's side the lead in the 13th minute before the Black Cats turned the match on its head by scoring twice within four minutes shortly after the restart.
Chris Rigg scored the equalizer, which was quickly followed four minutes later by Wilson Isidor's brilliant finish, his sixth goal of the season.
However, with Sunderland seemingly on course for all three points, Leonard turned the ball home after Makhtar Gueye's knockdown, sending the home support into delight.
The two teams remain in the play-off places, with fourth-placed Sunderland missing the chance to close the gap on the top two. Rovers, meanwhile, remain in fifth place.
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