After beating Aston Villa at the end of April, Fulham were firmly in the mix not only for European qualification but potentially for a Champions League spot. A loss at Arsenal was not unexpected, the manner of the defeat by Bournemouth was hugely frustrating but victory at the league's bottom side would have kept Marco Silva's side in contention going into the final day. A huge swing in goal difference and the most unlikely sequence of results would now be needed for Fulham to make the top eight.
As Bournemouth's players celebrated Saturday's win at Fulham with the away fans, one of the team whose name was chanted most heartily was that of Adam Smith. As club captain, longest-serving current player and the last remaining link to the Cherries' League One days, Smith knows the scale of the journey Bournemouth have experienced. Smith was still a teenager when he joined the Cherries on loan from Tottenham for the 2010-11 season, having already been loaned out to Wycombe and Torquay.
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