Promotion veteran provides Leeds United, Leicester City & Ipswich Town title race verdict as 'big surprise' outlined

Conor Hourihane knows a thing or two about Championship promotion races having been involved in several in his time. The former Republic of Ireland international has challenged for promotion to the Premier League with the likes of Aston Villa, Sheffield United and Swansea City in the past and he currently finds himself locked in another battle at present as Derby County push for a return to the second tier.

However, even with all his experience, Hourihane has been left stunned by the way Leicester City have been reeled in by Leeds United and Ipswich Town. The Foxes held a 12-point lead at the top of the Championship last month and at that stage they looked like dead certs for automatic promotion.

That lead has been steadily eaten away at over the last month, though, with form deserting Enzo Maresca's side and while they were in FA Cup action before the international break, Leeds succeeded in knocking them off their perch. Of course, the Foxes do have a game in hand on their rivals and they have the chance to pile the pressure on in the early kick-off against Bristol City on Good Friday.

But the manner of their slide, coupled with the relentless form of Leeds and Ipswich, has come as a huge shock to Hourihane.

"The top four have gone storming ahead over the course of the season," the Derby man told Talksport. "Five, six, seven, eight games ago Leicester were flying high and it was only a matter of time until they got promoted, but all of a sudden they’ve hit a bit of a dip. Every team is going to have a dip over 46 games and over an EFL season it’s so hard to stay that consistent.

"Everyone has two losses in a row or three losses in a row but it’s how quickly you can come out of that – Leicester had two or three losses and everyone thought they would be fine but that run has turned into five or six games and the teams behind them have hit really good form and closed that gap. It’s been a bit of a surprise because they looked that strong and that convincing and for them to be second now is a big surprise."