Players believe the absence of fans has been one of the biggest factors in a wild Premier League season so far, according to Conor Coady.
The Wolves centre-half said squads are desperate to have crowds back as soon as possible, and the situation has actually lead to opposition sides trying to be louder than each other in games in order to create their own atmosphere.
Coady also put the situation down to alternating levels of fitness, but believes the lack of fans have been a “big factor”. Speaking on England duty, he added that the fact crowds are back in stadiums in other European countries has made Premier League players envious.
“Honestly, they are mad, the scorelines,” Coady said. “They’re mad. It’s a tough one to put your finger on, it really is. You look at it at the start of the season, some teams are ahead of others in terms of fitness, in terms of having a pre-season, and a little bit of extra training. The teams that have been in European competition obviously haven’t had that, to start off with, to gain that match sharpness at the start of the season, so that might play a bit of a factor.
“I think fans play a big factor, I’ll be totally honest with you, I think we all want them back as soon as possible, we’ve seen other countries doing it now, and it’s something we want as soon as possible. I do think that is a factor, yeah, and the sooner we get them back the better it is for everybody.
“But it’s something we’ve got to deal with, the situations coming our way now, professional footballers, that’s what we need to do, I agree with you, some of the scorelines have been absolutely crazy, but us as players have to deal with that, and hopefully not have them week in week out playing for our clubs.”
Coady was asked whether the situation has led to him watching what he says on a pitch, since everything is picked, but revealed that the impetus is actually to be as loud as possible.
“It’s hard to watch what you’re saying when you’re in the heat of the battle, I’ll be honest with you, it’s tough, and you obviously get picked up on the mics and different things, but I also think it’s important for the team – might sound a bit daft – that you try and be a bit louder than the other team, because you want to try and create your own atmosphere.
“It’s tough without supporters, honestly, and it’s getting even harder, but I think it’s important to create your own atmosphere within your own team to give yourself the best possible chance of winning.”
