Preston have parted company with manager Paul Heckingbottom after a 1-0 defeat at home to newly-promoted Lincoln left them in the relegation zone with one win and six losses from their opening seven games.
At the other end of the table, promotion-chasing West Ham, Middlesbrough, Wolves and Southampton picked up crucial victories, while dark horses Swansea also got back to winning ways.
Here, Flashscore takes a look at some of the big talking points from the latest Championship action.
Preston sack Heckingbottom
Paul Heckingbottom became the first managerial casualty of the 2026/27 Championship season after his Preston side were defeated 1-0 by newly-promoted Lincoln.
North End have won just one league game this season and sit second-from-bottom in the table following their latest loss.
The result led to Heckingbottom's sacking, with Preston confirming in a statement that the team's performances have not been good enough despite 'significant investment' in the playing squad.
"Preston North End Football Club have today taken the decision to part company with Paul Heckingbottom as First Team Football Manager," the club said.
"Football is a results business, and despite significant investment in the playing squad since Paul joined, the results during 2026 and the start of this current campaign have not been acceptable.
"Paul leaves us with our thanks and best wishes. His professionalism and work ethic during his time with us have been second to none."
Preston reportedly spent over £13 million on summer signings, bringing in promising talents like Alfie Devine, Harry Clarke, Johnny Kenny and Leo Leroy.
Despite a solid investement across the squad, Heckingbottom's side have scored the second-fewest goals in the league and have managed to find the net more than once in a match just one time.
Preston look to be in deep trouble, but have acted quickly in a bid to change their fortunes as soon as possible - the upcoming three-week international break feels perfectly timed for them to reset and go again under new management.
West Ham gain edge in promotion race
After a rocky start to the campaign, West Ham now sit top of the Championship following four wins in a row - with the latest coming in the form of a 6-0 thrashing of Wrexham.
The Hammers' quality shone through on Friday evening, with six different scorers finding the net as they put Phil Parkinson's play-off hopefuls to the sword.
Jarrod Bowen, Joel Piroe, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Taty Castellanos, Mohamadou Kante and Manor Solomon all got in on the act as Nuno Espirito Santo's side laid down a marker in the race for automatic promotion.
West Ham are top on goal difference, but both Swansea and West Brom are level on points with the London club.
The Swans got back to winning ways with a comfortable 3-1 victory over bottom-placed Burnley; Adam Idah, Moussa Kounfolo Yeo and Zan Vipotnik all got on the scoresheet for the Welsh side.
West Brom had to come from behind to draw with QPR. The Baggies went behind after an unfortunate own goal from Chris Mepham, but swiftly equalised through a superb effort from Callum Styles. The match ended 1-1, with both teams cancelling each other out in the second half.
Middlesbrough follow closely behind, with just one point separating them and the top three sides - although the Teessiders could leapfrog everyone if they win their game in hand.
Kim Hellberg's men were in action against Norwich on Saturday and needed a 91st-minute winner from Ashley Phillips to come out on top in a seven-goal thriller.
Mohamed Toure had opened the scoring for the Canaries after just one minute, only for Boro to net three themselves in the space of just over half-an-hour - twice through Sebastian Berhalter and once from Amario Cozier-Dubbery.
Jovon Makama and Jacob Wright got Norwich back into the game, only for all of their hard work to come undone after Phillips' late winner.
The battling result further highlighted Middlesbrough's promotion credentials, and perhaps eased some worries that they struggle to score enough goals.
Wolves also kept their promotion charge going with a late winner, defeating Sheffield United 1-0 thanks to Raul Jimenez's 90th-minute strike.
Larin on target for Southampton
Southampton also continued their push up the table with a 4-1 thrashing of Bristol City.
Star striker Cyle Larin was on form again and bagged his sixth and seventh Championship goals of the season - with one particularly catching the eye.
The Canadian received the ball outside the box, moved away from two defenders and curled a lovely effort inside the far post to clinch our Goal of the Week.
Bazunu seeks redemption with Bolton
Gavin Bazunu got off to a tough start to his Bolton career, but was excellent as his side picked up a 1-0 victory over fellow newly-promoted club Cardiff.
The goalkeeper was in superb form, making 10 saves to help his side keep a clean sheet and earn their second win of the season - getting a 9.4 Flashscore rating in the process, which makes Bazunu our Player of the Week!
Check out the full Team of the Week:
