Fulam win promotion to the Premier League

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Aston Villa 0-1 Fulham: Cottagers secure Premier League return with win (May 26 2018)

Fulham captain Tom Cairney was the hero for his side scoring the only goal of the game as the Cottagers returned to the Premier League with a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa in the Sky Bet Championship play-off final.

The midfielder struck the only goal of the contest in the first-half, to the sheer delight of the white half of Wembley stadium.

Villa had chances though, and are left to rue missed opportunities as they prepare for a third consecutive season in England’s third tier.

It was Cairney who struck to give Fulham the lead with just over 20 minutes played, in what was the first real chance of the game.

A perfectly-weighted pass from Ryan Sessegnon found the midfielder’s run behind the defence, and the Scottish international made no mistake as he slotted the ball under Tom Johnstone into the bottom corner of the net.

Sessegnon came close to doubling the lead on the half-hour mark. Aboubakar Kamara’s cross from the right deflected off John Terry into the path of the youngster, but he could only direct his header into the arms of the Villa goalkeeper.

The first-half was a worrying one for Villa, who failed to register a shot-on-target for the first 40 minutes of the contest.

They had their chances though, and their first real opportunity came through Jack Grealish. Robert Snodgrass dinked a free-kick into the path of the midfielder, who struck high and over with his effort.

Fulham ended the half with the edge and star forward Aleksandar Mitrovic almost continued his fine goal-scoring form with minutes of the first 45 remaining. A slick passing move from the Cottagers saw the ball find the Serbian, who was denied by a last-ditch block from James Chester inside the area.

The second-half saw a bit more urgency from Steve Bruce’s Villa – but it was Fulham who would have the first chance. Stefan Johansen looked to curl a shot from the edge of the area – but Johnstone gathered easily.

Once again, it was Grealish looking the most dangerous for Villa. With five minutes of the second-half played, he connected with Albert Adomah’s cross but could only guide his close-range header over.

Again, that man Grealish nearly put Villa back on level terms with what could have been one of the finest EFL play-off goals ever scored.

The youngster picked up the ball on halfway before driving forward, beating multiple Fulham players along the way. His shot from the edge of the six-yard box was blocked by Marcus Bettinelli in goal.

However, he nearly went from hero to villain. With just over an hour played, his lunge on Cairney caused uproar on the pitch, although referee Anthony Taylor deemed it a yellow card offence. Grealish could count himself lucky that on another day, he may have been walking.

He opted against a red minutes earlier, but Taylor was left no option but to show Denis Odoi a second yellow for a challenge on Grealish. There were little complaints about the decision.

The game became tense as Villa pushed for the equaliser, and Fulham’s defensive substitutions showed that they were eager to see the result out.

The trailing side had a golden opportunity when they were awarded a dangerous free-kick in the 90th minutes. Snodgrass could only curl his effort wide of the goal.

The final whistle sparked wild celebrations from the Fulham fans, with Villa hearts broken as they await a return to the promised land of the Premier League.

Attendance: 85,243

Sporting Life man of the match: Tom Cairney