Fulham are heading back to the Premier League after a 2-1 win over a below-par Brentford in what was a largely uneventful Championship Play-Off Final at Wembley.
The Cottagers showed their quality early on, dominating possession and engineering an excellent Josh Onomah chance which David Raya did well to deny on 17 minutes.
At the other end, Bryan Mbuemo would have had a tap in but for Michael Hector’s last ditch touch to deny the forward which proved to be the last clear chance in a nervy opening period.
Neeskans Kebano’s brilliant free-kick effort early in the second-half rippled the side netting as Fulham’s tactical masterclass stifled the usual free-flowing Brentford attack.
However, Brentford’s Ollie Watkins did get a rare glimpse of goal – the forward trying to smash an effort in from outside the box with Fulham keeper Marek Rodak equal to it.
The final 20 minutes saw nothing between the sides as the game inevitably meandered towards Extra Time.
During the additional period, Watkins had a half chance from a Sergi Canos cross which Michael Hector smuggled out for a goal-kick before the deadlock was eventually broken in the 105th minute.
Some quick thinking from Joe Bryan saw his 40-yard free-kick sail past a stranded Raya before the full-back played a lovely one-two with Aleksandr Mitrovic for his second.
Henrik Dalsgaard managed to halve the deficit in the 34th minute of Extra Time but it was too little, too late as it is Fulham, not Brentford, that book their place in the Premier League.