We could have listed 100 Talking Points from Tuesday night, but we've managed to whittle it down to five for your perusal.
1. Winning when it counts
No Fulham fan will need reminding of our recent record against Brentford. Only once have we bested them in the league since we started playing each other again, but we will not care about that one iota after defeating our neighbours on the biggest stage of all. Despite pre-match suggestions from inside the Bees camp to the contrary, the boys put in a fearless display to confirm their place back amongst the footballing elite.
2. Big player Joe
Joe Bryan had two Fulham goals to his name prior to the Play-Off Final, but doubled his tally for the Club inside 13 extra-time minutes. He may have seemed an unlikely goal scorer, but history suggests otherwise, with Bryan often finding the net in important matches for his previous side Bristol City. A phenomenal strike in the League Cup against Manchester United springs to mind, but he has also scored in the Bristol derby against Rovers, as well as in a vital win for the Robins against Bradford City that confirmed their promotion to the Championship five years ago.
3. Bouncebackability
As Fulham learnt following relegation in 2014, returning to the Premier League at the first time of asking is no easy task. Add into that the fact that this is Scott Parker’s first full-time managerial gig, and the feat becomes all the more impressive. The Whites Head Coach won a lot of plaudits for his tactics and post-match comments on Tuesday, with his achievements at a Club he holds close to his heart rightly being celebrated.
4. Car trouble
Much has been made of Brentford’s front three this season of Benrahma, Mbeumo and Watkins, or BMW as they have been labelled, and rightly so after they plundered the better part of 60 goals between them. But Scott Parker got his tactics bang on at Wembley, foiling the BMW before they could even turn on the ignition. Benrahma got on the ball plenty without influencing play, Mbeumo was substituted after an hour, and Watkins had just 37 touches, the fewest of anyone who completed 120 minutes.
5. Mitro’s century
There’s bringing up 100 appearances for your club, and there’s doing it at Wembley Stadium in a win against your local rivals to secure promotion to the Premier League. Aleksandar Mitrović has been a hero for Fulham in his first 99 appearances, and although he may not have been fully fit as he brought up number 100, he still managed to make his mark. Joe Bryan has provided numerous assists for the big man this campaign, so it was only right he returned the favour, with the pair playing a slick one-two in the build-up to the tie-killing second goal.
