John Eustace believes Leeds United will be automatically promoted from the Championship but insists Blackburn Rovers can beat the league leaders.

The Whites are the favourites to win the division after narrowly missing out on an instant return to the Premier League last term. Rovers, by contrast, narrowly avoided the drop.

Whilst Leeds have continued in the same vain of form, Rovers have drastically improved. Having beaten another promotion contender in Middlesbrough on Wednesday night, confidence is high.

They will have to again be at their best to beat a Leeds team 'filled with Premier League quality' but Eustace is confident that his team can be a match for anyone.

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"They have carried on from where they were last season, they have brilliant players and a great manager," Eustace said on the Yorkshire outfit.

"They will be in the top-six, probably top two I would reckon, at the end of the season. They have Premier League quality and we will have a game plan as we always do to try and stop that.

"It will be a tough challenge, they're top of the league for a reason. The manager knows how to get out of the league and it will be a good challenge for us against a top side.

"The lads are confident because performances have been good. Watford was good, the first half against Sheffield United was good. We have spoken about setbacks from that game and not dropping our heads.

"We have to keep believing that we're a team that can match anyone. We are slowly doing that.

"I hope the fans will be right behind us after two wins. The performances are heading in the right direction, they're good but the results don't always come. We believe in what we're doing and we hope that is clear to see."

Rovers are eighth in the table after 16 games, having played one fewer than those around them. The team is continuing to develop with the offensive side of their game particularly improving.

Eustace believes his side are becoming better at imposing themselves on their opponents.

"I think after 16 games, we're showing everyone we're a good team. We are hard to play against and we're evolving as a group," Eustace said.

"That's the most pleasing thing for me. I think we have to make sure we don't get carried away, we have started well and we're improving.

"You will get injuries, suspensions. The group is together and committed which can get you a long way in this league.

"There's a lot of hard work ahead. We want to be more clinical in that final third. The football we're playing is getting better. 

"We carried on from Cardiff in that first half against Middlesbrough but then showed the other side after half-time."