West Brom boss Slaven Bilic: Playing behind closed doors 'not nice'
Head coach Slaven Bilic will draw on his experiences in the former Yugoslavia and Turkey if Albion have to resume the season behind closed doors.
Last week, EFL chairman Rick Parry said it’s highly likely all matches will have to be played without supporters once football is able to return following the coronavirus pandemic.
Bilic gained first-hand experience of playing games in empty stadiums before the break-up of Yugoslavia and also in Turkey where he managed. And he warned his players it will take some getting used to.
“I played in a few games behind closed doors in ex-Yugoslavia and also Turkey because there were a few problems with fans,” Bilic said.
“It’s different. It’s not nice. Crowds are essential, without them it’s a totally different feeling. It’s nowhere near the same atmosphere.
“Nobody is saying it’s better to play without crowds, but unfortunately it’s the only way, or it may be the only way for us to finish the season.
“For me, I think it’s better to do it that way than not to play at all – that’d be a disaster.
“I’m not talking about a disaster for who finishes first or second – I’m talking about some clubs who will be in big problems that would be impossible to recover from.
“It’s not about who’s going to get promoted, or are Liverpool going to win the league? They’re small things. The bigger thing is for the sake of football clubs. Some clubs are struggling and they need to function.
“It’s not ideal to play behind closed doors, but if it’s the only way we need to adjust.”
Meanwhile, Bilic revealed he is speaking to his players every few days as they continue to train at home.
Each member of the Albion squad has been given an individual fitness programme by Nick Davies, the club’s head of performance.
And Bilic makes sure he checks in every couple of days to make sure his players are okay and sticking to their regime.
“It’s not a daily thing,” Bilic said when asked how often he is speaking to his players.
“They have their chat. I don’t want to bombard them with information.
“We still don’t know the key information – when we are going to restart.
“Nick Davies and his fitness guys have done great programmes, so the guys are working at them and we’re monitoring them.
“Their response has been fantastic. I check with the guys every few days and so far, so good.
“And we’re going to start sending them a few video clips just to remind them why we are where we are and what we have to do just to remind them of the mentality and a little bit of tactics.
