Who should Chelsea fans root for in the Championship Playoff final?

The Championship Playoff final is a few hours away, but which west London club should Chelsea fans be cheering on in the big match?

Fulham and Brentford will meet Tuesday in an all-west London Derby to decide the last promotion spot. The Championship Playoff final winner will join Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League next season. For Chelsea, this means the Blues will play yet another London Derby next season, but who should fans root for in the match?

On the surface, this is a match between Fulham—a perennial yo-yo club—and Brentford, who has yet seldom played in the top flight during its history (two seasons since the Second World War). For those who do not really care about a so-called Cinderella story, or the narratives around either club, the choice of who to cheer for is relatively simple. Chelsea fans want to see Fulham win and the answer why is two-fold.

First and foremost, Brentford’s failure to secure promotion will almost certainly lead to Said Benrahma’s exit. Benrahma and Ollie Watkins have been the Bees’ players of the season thus far. Simply put, they’re too good to hang around another year in the second-tier of English football. Both will presumably make the jump to a top tier, be it the Premier League or elsewhere. Chelsea—linked with Watkins last season—has kept an eye on Benrahma for quite awhile. Brentford’s stay in the Championship would lower his price as the Blues are looking to secure the services of another winger.

Further, the Blues have dominated the Cottagers in meetings between the two, so the points are always welcome. Fulham hasn’t defeated Chelsea since 2006, with the Stamford Bridge club taking 40 points from its west London foes in that span. Chelsea has only lost one of its 36 west London derbies against Fulham in league play in the last 40 years. Of all the in-town opposition, the Blues have enjoyed the most success against its near neighbors, so much so the rivalry is not thought of as such any longer. The rivalries each club has built with other clubs in London—in addition to Chelsea’s one-sided success against Fulham—has led to the opposition only fueled solely by location.

On all accounts, Fulham coming up to the Premier League again would benefit Chelsea. The Blues don’t have a sour relationship or heated rivalry with either club, so there is not much of a competitive reason to root for either. Regardless, Chelsea will be keeping a close eye on the Championship Playoff final for a few reasons—and probably rooting for Fulham.