Fulham reach Championship play-off final

Fulham are one win away from the Premier League after overturning a one goal first-leg deficit to knock Derby County out of the Championship play-off semi-finals 2-1 on aggregate..

Slavisa Jokanovic’s side, who had blown their hard-earned shot at automatic promotion and succumbed to a meek 1-0 defeat at Pride Park in the first leg, offered a timely reminder as to why they belong in the top flight, playing Derby off the park throughout.

They had to wait until the second half for their reward as Ryan Sessegnon and Dennis Odoi struck to earn them a place in the £170million playoff final later this month.

If they replicate tonight’s display they will surely be back in the Premier League for the first time since 2014.

At half-time it would have been a brave Fulham fan who made such a prediction. Aleksandar Mitrovic had tamed Curtis Davies but could not find a way past Scott Carson. Too often the Newcastle loanee swivelled and shot wide from outside the box and on the one occasion he did get closer to goal his bullet header was blocked by an implausible save by the Derby goalkeeper.

Mitrovic wasn’t the only player to be denied by the former England shot-stopper, though Sessegnon had only himself to blame when he spurned a three-on-one, failing to bring Aboubakar Kamara’s pass under control and firing straight at the goalkeeper.

Derby’s counter-punching and intelligent pressing was earning them half-chances at the other end, though they were unable to draw a save from Marcus Bettinelli. Cameron Jerome came closest but couldn’t quite beat Odoi to a fizzing cross by Ikechi Anya.

With Premier League vultures circling over Tom Cairney, Ryan Fredericks and Sessegnon there was a sense that the second half could dictate the fortunes of Fulham for years to come. Luckily for them they have surely the best 17-year-old in the world in their ranks and, as he so often has this season, he made a telling contribution when his side needed it most.

Matt Targett’s delivery from the left was knocked into his path by Stefan Johansen but it would still take an excellent finish to beat Carson, even from six yards out. That was just what Sessegnon provided, leathering the ball into the roof of the net from close range.

From that moment on it was obvious the next goal was going to Fulham, though its provider was far from predictable. Denis Odoi, the 5ft8in auxiliary centre-back, rose through the air to meet a Cairney corner at the near post, flicking an exquisite header across Carson and into the far corner.

With 25 minutes left Fulham still had to hold on and their task would have been much easier had Kamara made the most of his one-man breakaway. With only Carson to beat outside the area he chose to knock the ball past the goalkeeper and hurl himself to the floor, earning a yellow card for his troubles when he could so easily have scored.

Their visitors never looked like making them pay, though Andi Weimann had a half-hearted appeal for a penalty denied after grappling with Sessegnon. There was, though, no way that the brilliant youngster could be anything other than the hero tonight.