Rodgers says having fans at last match may be unfair move
CITY BOSS ADMITS THE RETURN OF SUPPORTERS IS A ‘CONUNDRUM’
LEICESTER City have reached a year without fans and while a return to the King Power Stadium is now coming into view, manager Brendan Rodgers has said it is a “conundrum” that could affect the Premier League’s integrity.
Not since March 9 last year have City supporters been allowed to attend a game, when a full house cheered a 4-0 home victory over Aston Villa in what was the final Premier League fixture played before the first lockdown caused a threemonth pause to the game.
While a handful of fans were able to attend games around the country in late autumn, the King Power Stadium was not opened with the coronavirus infection in Leicester never dropping low enough.
However, based on the dates set out in the government’s roadmap out of the current restrictions, 8,000 fans – a quarter of the King Power Stadium’s capacity – will be able to take their seats for the final game of the season against Tottenham on May 23.
Even though City stand to benefit, Rodgers has admitted it could be unfair.
However, there are suggestions that the Premier League will push back the 37th game to midweek, so that all sets of fans could attend at least one game.
City play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the penultimate game.
Rodgers said on the matter last week: “There’s nothing more that we want than supporters back in the stadiums.
“It’s a huge miss for the intensity of the game, for the pressure of the game.
“Just from a social perspective it will be amazing to have that connection again.
“We have our last game at home against Tottenham, and I would say we’ve gone through the whole season without supporters and I think it would give an advantage to teams that would have supporters in for that last game. It’s a conundrum because you want supporters back.
“But I think this has been a unique season and for the integrity of the competition, I believe it should be seen through as it’s been all season for the last game, and then there’s a real excitement looking ahead towards next season.”
City set out their plans to welcome back fans in October, when there was a realistic hope that they would be able to open the ground long before the end of the season.
The process was to allow supporters who renewed their season tickets to enter a ballot, and then a portion would be picked out to attend.
City are currently absorbing the details and working out a plan on how to get supporters back in for the season finale, but it will honour the process they laid out at the end of last year.