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Ream, Fulham downs Brentford to clinch Premier League promotion

Tim Ream and Fulham are back in the big time.

Scott Parker’s side downed London rivals Brentford 2-1 in extra time on Tuesday in the EFL Championship Promotion Playoff Final. Fulham left back Joe Bryan scored a pair of goals in the extra period, which was all Fulham needed to clinch promotion back to the English top-flight after suffering relegation in 2019.

Both sides had plenty of chances to break the deadlock earlier in the match, but were unable to score in regulation. Bryan’s free kick roughly 40 yards out caught David Raya scrambling and nestled into the Brentford goal.

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With Brentford pushing for an equalizer, Fulham iced the result with Bryan showing his calmness from close range. The left back darted forward and after a nice 1-2 with Aleksandar Mitrovic, slotted between the legs of Raya for his second of the game.

Brentford pulled a goal back in stoppage time, but it wouldn’t lead to any late drama from Wembley.

Ream made his 47th combined league appearance of the season for the Cottagers, helping them win the playoff after finishing behind Leeds United, West Bromwich Albion, and Brentford in the regular season standings.

The 32-year-old won three of his five individual battles on the afternoon, while also completing 84% of his passes. 2020-21′ will be Ream’s third-career season in the EPL after playing also with Bolton Wanderers in 2011-12′.

Ream will join fellow U.S. Men’s National Team teammate Christian Pulisic in the top flight next season. Fulham’s new season will begin in September due to the COVID-19 pandemic pushing the current campaign into the summer.

Comments

  1. This is the second article that has stated Ream will join Pulisic as the only two USMNT players in the Premier League. Does that mean it’s a foregone conclusion that Yedlin is leaving England?

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  2. FFC fan glad they are back up. But that was a long near post goal and the keeper was out of position so bad the dive was basically for the cameras.

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    • The weird thing was the keeper played pretty well the rest of the match. I was just casually watching while doing other things but Fulham to me were the better side, even if the benefited from the GK mistake.

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    • Shortly after the goal, the match commentators actually said that the suggestion to go for goal had come from Stuart Grey (Fulham assistant). If true, I’d bet that the idea was hatched after seeing Raya come 45 yards out of his goal 1-2 mins earlier to head away a punt from the opposing keeper. He was getting aggressive and got caught cheating.

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      • he was out to his 6 and positioned himself too far left in anticipation of a cross. i also have to wonder if he was lazy on setting the wall. to me that was hit like i used to play bendy passes down the open space on the right flank, skipping, some pace, but closer to a pass and i still say shouldn’t have fooled a keeper paying attention. But he sold out on “cross.”

    • Ream, to me, remains the guy who would show up on the lists at the end of each MLS year for both pretty assists and harebrained gaffes. Surely Berhalter remembers this?

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      • Yeah Ream has Omar Disease. No matter how well he does with other things, you know he’s never far away from a disaster… 1-3 heart attack moments in any game. He’s not entirely out of the USMNT pool for me …. but he ain’t in the future.

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