Sloppy defending from Leeds United gifted Middlesbrough a 3-0 win, a result that lifts Aitor Karanka's side to within a point of Championship leader Brighton and Hove Albion.

David Nugent fired the host ahead early on at the Riverside Stadium, and Leeds went further behind on the half-hour mark when Giuseppe Bellusci headed into his own net from George Friend's whipped cross.

Marco Antenucci, who had been lucky to escape a red card earlier on for a high tackle on Tomas Kalas, thought he had pulled a goal back for Uwe Rosler's Leeds after the interval, but his close-range strike was disallowed for offside.

A disastrous mistake from Leeds captain Sol Bamba capped off a miserable afternoon for Rosler, the centre-back dithering on the ball on the edge of the area before slipping, with Diego Fabbrini nipping in to apply the finish nine minutes from time.