Leicester to prepare for Premier League restart with practice games at empty stadium
The Premier League, which has been suspended since March 13 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on June 17
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Leicester City will hold practice matches at an empty King Power Stadium to prepare their players for games without fans when the Premier League resumes this month, manager Brendan Rodgers said.
The Premier League, which has been suspended since March 13 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on June 17 with all matches to be played behind closed doors
“We’ll have some practice games in our own stadium before we play. We’ll play at the King Power, so they’ll feel and get a sense of that,” Rodgers told British media.
The Premier League is exploring the use of audio effects and computer generated ‘fans’ to improve the viewer experience of watching behind closed doors games but Rodgers said the game would not be the same without fans.
“It’s absolutely not. It can’t be,” Rodgers said.
“However, it’s what we have to do. The intensity and commitment of players will still be there. We’d love our supporters to be there but there won’t be any.
“We’ll have a cause we’ll be fighting for. They may not be with us in the stadium but there will be millions of people watching, thousands of Leicester supporters around the world... we have a duty for them to do the best we can.”
Leicester are third in the league on 53 points, four behind second-placed Manchester City, who have played a game less.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments