Following a one year stay in England’s second tier, Fulham is now back in the Premier League after beating one of its biggest rivals, Brentford.
Dubbed the ‘World’s Richest Game’, the cottagers won the playoff final on Tuesday’s championship. The team prevailed with Tim Ream, a US Men’s National Team defender, going the full extra time of 90 and 30 minutes.
The US champion led with 111 passes, chipping in with one block, three clearances and two interceptions. That was something hard to figure out in a football prediction.
Fulham got its promotion in the 2018/19 season but was later sent back to the championship early 2020. The team proved its resiliency by fighting for a playoff spot and getting back to the top, thanks to Ream, who selflessly defended the team as starting center-back.
At the age of 32, the US player is nearing his prime years but has proved to be a steady defender and a valuable asset for the team. He has played for the London Club since 2015 and has started 47 out of 49 league matches this season.
So far, Ream has 40 caps with the United States. In 2019 alone, he scooped 14 of them, being a Gredd Berhalter fixture in the Gold Cup and Concacaf Nations League.
The immediate return to the Premier League was on Tuesday attained after Joe Bryan shot a 2-1 win in the nearly empty Wembley Stadium due to the fears of the COVID 19 spread.
The full-back player gave the first score towards the close of the first extra-time period with a deep free-kick. It was only three minutes to the end of the second extra time when Bryan wrapped the victory with a second goal at close range after a quick exchange with Aleksander Mitrovic.
In his short managerial career, Scott Parker, the club boss, got one of the biggest wins of his career through the Fulham win.
Brentford, who vigorously competed for the top position in the premier league, with the input of Henrik Dalsgaard, scooped their first goal in the final seconds, at the 124th minute during which the promotion was confirmed.
In his remarks, Bryan was quick to note that every single player in the team, including the fans had made Fulham the ultimate winner.