'Fulham will be back soon' – Aina bids farewell as Cottagers spell comes to an end

Ola Aina has thanked English Championship Side Fulham after confirming his spell at Craven Cottage has come to a close.

The former Chelsea wing-back joined the Cottagers on a season-long loan from Torino in September 2020, to bolster Scott Parker’s defensive options.

He played 31 Premier League games with two goals to his credit. Nonetheless, things did not go according to plan with the London side getting demoted.

In a post on social media, the 24-year-old spoke positively about the club and wished them well for the future.

“To Fulham FC, thank you for making a big goal of mine achievable by playing week in, week out,” Aina wrote on Instagram.

“To all my brothers thank you for making this experience so special I love you man.

“To the manager and his staff thank you too, to the fans it’s a shame we couldn’t stay in the prem, we all put a shift in.

“I’m sure Fulham will be back very soon.”

Aina’s disclosed that his only regret was not getting the opportunity to play in front of the Fulham fans – which he claimed might have played a role in the team’s relegation.

“I think it’s affected most teams,” he told the club website.

“You look at Sheffield United, last year they were flying, and then this season you see what having no fans does.

“I think it’s affected a lot of teams, and we’re one of those. When we needed fans in the stadium for certain games, there are results that might have gone in our favour if they were there maybe.

“It has played a part in our season, I think, it has affected us. But we can’t be making excuses, it is what it is, we didn’t manage to stay up, but it would have been lovely for the fans to have been in the stadium this season.

“I’d just like to say thank you to them for all the support you’ve given me and the team. We wish you’d been with us the whole season, but it was good to have some of you back at the last game.”