‘It won’t be the same’ – Brendan Rodgers on an FA Cup final without the fans

As we’ve already seen in the Bundesliga and as we’ll shortly see in the other top European leagues, playing football in empty stadiums will be the norm for the foreseeable future.

Without a coronavirus vaccine, it could even be another year or so before supporters are allowed back into grounds into greater numbers.

In the meantime, players and managers need to get used to having their every instruction clearly heard, with no hiding place for anyone on the pitch.

Leicester City manager, Brendan Rodgers, has even thought about the seeing English football’s showpiece – the FA Cup final at Wembley – played in front of no supporters.

Surely in all of its illustrious history, any such final would be on a par with the White Horse final of 1923 as being amongst the strangest.

“The cup game is a strange one,” Rodgers said to NBC and cited in the Daily Mail.

“The FA Cup so historic but you can get to the final of that and play at an empty Wembley Stadium. There are so many things to consider.

“After this scenario we will all be winners if everyone can come through safe and get football back on for supporters. It won’t be the same without them but we will do everything we can to make it a spectacle if the games get played.”

On a more serious note, if this short-term pain allows for longer term gain, then this is just a price that everyone has to be willing to pay in order to get the sport back to where it belongs in the shortest possible time.