Raya’s howler is a £160m blow to Brentford dream
BRAVO, Fulham’s Joe Bryan. To have the imagination to try that free kick — and pull it off so late in a play-off final — was remarkable. But dear oh dear, what was Brentford goalkeeper David Raya (below) doing? Raya’s starting position was awful. He was clearly expecting a cross and banked on it, but he was outwitted. It proved a costly mistake — a £160million mistake, you might say. The Championship play-off final is all or nothing, triumph or disaster. The players spend the build-up hearing about how much this match is worth financially to their respective clubs. That’s t’s pressure. But it’s important to play the game, not the occasion. Fulham did that. Scott Parker got his tactics right, with Brentford’s front three ee of Said Benrahma, Bryan yan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins — the BMW — hardly troubling their opponents at Wembley Stadium. Parker showed why managerless Bournemouth are interested in speaking to him, but they’re heading to the Championship and he is off to the Premier League. Do not underestimate the pressure that was on Parker to drag Fulham back to the top flight. They were promoted via the play-offs under Slavisa Jokanovic in 2018 and wasted £100m as they were then relegated in 2019. A lot of big names remained when they dropped down — including Aleksandar Mitrovic, who had plenty of suitors lining up to sign him. The wage bill was high, which meant expectation in the boardroom was even higher. It was promotion or bust for Parker, and he didn’t disappoint his bosses last night. His next task is to stay there. It’s one thing to get to the Premier League, and another to stay there. But Fulham can take inspiration from Sheffield United. Chris Wilder’s side proved everyone wrong after starting the season as favourites for the drop. Wilder stood by the three-at-the-back system that took them up. You wonder whether Parker will stand by his principles, too. Under him, Fulham made more passes than any other side in 2019-20, while only Leeds averaged greater possession. Dare they try to keep the ball among the big boys? We’re going to find out.