Middlesbrough held on for a draw against Stoke City to close the gap to the automatic promotion spots to three points.
While a share of the spoils saw Boro extend their unbeaten home run to 10 Championship games, it means Sheffield United can extend the gap to second to six points if they beat Sunderland on Wednesday.
The Championship's leading scorer Chuba Akpom took his tally to 23 for the season with a cool first-half finish, having earlier curled an effort onto the bar from the edge of the area.
Ki-Jana Hoever's fine finish under the legs of Boro goalkeeper Zack Steffen restored parity before the break and set up a tense second half at the Riverside between two in-form sides.