EPL championship playoff 2020 result: Fulham beat Brentford 2-1
The richest game in world sport was decided by a star’s awful mistake as Fulham beat Brentford for a place in the Premier League.
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Joe Bryan was the hero as his double sent Fulham back into the English Premier League.
His superb long-range strike — coupled with a horror goalkeeping error — followed by a neat finish after some slick lead-up work in extra time gave Fulham a 2-0 lead over Brentford as the two teams slugged it out in the Championship playoff final worth an estimated $310 million to the winners.
Brentford scored a late goal to make it 2-1 but there was no time to stage a comeback as Fulham celebrated wildly after the referee blew the full-time whistle.
The rewards for promotion mean the Wembley showdown is often called the richest match in world football.
After 73 years outside the English top-flight, unfashionable Brentford got within touching distance of an unexpected berth among the elite but that’s where the fairytale ended.
In contrast to their west London neighbours, Fulham were hoping for an immediate return to the Premier League after last season’s relegation and got what they were after.
The huge stakes were reflected in the action as neither side scored in 90 minutes, sending the game into extra time.
The tension threatened to boil over in the first half of added time as four yellow cards were issued in just five minutes before Fulham took advantage of the resulting free kick from Christian Norgaard’s illegal tackle to break the deadlock and take a 1-0 lead with just 15 minutes remaining.
Bryan stepped up, striking his long-range shot sweetly to catch Brentford keeper David Raya napping. The Fulham star shaped to cross the ball into the penalty area from the left wing and the shot-stopper was not expecting an effort on goal from that far out.
Raya was too slow to react and before he knew it the ball was in the back of the net, beating him at his near post — an unforgivable sin for a goalkeeper.
“The Brentford goalkeeper has got it horribly wrong, but it is extraordinary from Bryan, it really is,” Sky Sports’ Andy Hinchcliffe said in commentary.
What on earth was Raya doing there?! Just what this game needed though
— Kelvin Stuttard (@kelvinstuttard) August 4, 2020
Brentford keeper made a huge error leading to the free-kick and another huge error to let Fulham score for the free-kick 😬 you hate to see it.
— Carl Kinsella (@TVsCarlKinsella) August 4, 2020
The opening goal was no fluke, as Fulham’s Tom Cairney revealed the team spoke about Raya’s positioning before the match.
“We talked about it before the game with Raya’s starting position being so aggressive,” he told Sky Sports.
Bryan said post-match his coach Scott Parker told him to go for a near-post free kick because Raya “comes ricidulously far off his line”, and the tactic paid off big time.
“I’m not the hero. Every one of those boys, players, management, staff, they’ve been unbelievable,” Bryan said.
“We’ve been written off five, six, seven times, and I think I even read somewhere we were supposed to be scared of them.
“But we took it to them, we scored twice, and they made it hard for us but they’re a good team. I can’t believe we’ve bounced straight back up.”
Bryan put the result beyond doubt with three minutes to go, combining with Aleksandar Mitrovic for a classy one-two on the edge of the box before sliding the ball past Raya for a second time.
Henrik Dalsgaard headed in from close range with just seconds remaining to send a scare through Fulham fans but it was far too late, meaning Brentford will have to wait another season to make a push for English football’s top flight.
It was a heartbreaking end to the season for Brentford, whose story captured the imagination of neutrals. After spending 59 out of 60 seasons in the third or fourth tiers before reaching the Championship in 2014, the Bees have risen well above their traditional status thanks to innovative owner Matthew Benham.
Benham has introduced an analytics-influenced approach overseen by two directors of football, ensuring the club make the most of their resources, which are meagre in comparison with the Championship’s wealthier teams.
It has proved a successful formula as Brentford unearthed gems such as Neal Maupay, Ezri Konsa, Chris Mepham and Jota before selling them on for significant profits.
Ollie Watkins, Said Benrahma and Bryan Mbeumo are the latest stars off the production line. That trio took Brentford to the brink of automatic promotion last month before successive defeats against lowly Stoke and Barnsley forced them to settle for a third-place finish.
An impressive 3-1 win over Swansea in the playoff semi-final second leg overturned a 1-0 first-leg deficit and emphasised the quality nurtured by Brentford’s Danish boss Thomas Frank.
Winning promotion would have been the perfect way to say farewell to Griffin Park — Brentford’s home since 1904 — as they prepare to move into a new arena nearby next season. Unfortunately, the wait for Premier League riches continues.
Brentford beat Fulham 1-0 and 2-0 earlier this season but the tables were turned when the stakes mattered most.
— with AFP
Originally published as EPL championship playoff 2020 result: Fulham beat Brentford 2-1