FEATURE: Running On Empty

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Twelve months on and Charlie Taylor is missing the fans as the Clarets look to end a testing year on a high

2021-03-06T11:07:46.718Z

FEATURE: Running On Empty

Twelve months on and Charlie Taylor is missing the fans as the Clarets look to end a testing year on a high

2021-03-06T11:07:46.718Z

Twelve months on and Charlie Taylor is missing the fans as the Clarets look to end a testing year on a high

And while no-one in the Premier League would kick a ball again for 100 days, the supporters sadly wouldn’t be back inside their ground for a lot longer.

It’s now 12 months and counting. And while there is hope that the end of Covid-19 crisis and the restrictions that have prevented supporter attendance is in sight, ‘behind-closed-doors football’ will remain the norm for a little bit longer.

The Premier League has made the best of a bad job in getting fixtures played and televising every game live, which has kept as many supporters as possible in touch with their teams.

But the value of fans has never been more apparent and Clarets’ defender Charlie Taylor – for one – can’t wait for their return as he reflects on the strangest of years in the career of a professional footballer.

“Football has returned and the fans haven’t. It’s not the same,” said Taylor.

“There’s not the atmosphere and the fans really make the whole day.

“I think the day fans do return will be a great day and hopefully it’s not too far away.”

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There is a possibility that some supporters will be admitted for the final game or two of the current campaign, which would hopefully be the prelude for a more widespread return next season.

Even that timescale will have meant an 18-month shut-out for the majority of supporters, whose absence – while fully understandable in the fight to combat the pandemic – has made match-days a sterile and functional exercise.

The players deserve great credit for the level of competitiveness they have been able to deliver, with Taylor admitting they had never envisaged the scenario that unfolded once they had been informed their visit to City last March was off.

“We were told it would maybe be a couple of weeks and we’d be back,” recalled the Clarets’ left-back.

“You can get your head around that and accept that, but everyone was in the unknown and weeks passed by which turned into months.

“Finally, the football did return and it’s been a hugely strange time.

“We were thankful football was back and the next stage is getting fans back and stadiums full.

“It’s what everyone wants – the fans, the players and everyone connected with the clubs.

“We just want to be playing in full stadiums and in front of your home supporters.

“It gives you that bit of extra motivation and there’s no doubt it definitely helps you.”

Having embraced ‘project re-start’ in June to go on and finish 10th in the table for only the second time as a Premier League club, it was a case of déjà vu all over again for the Clarets in the current campaign as elite football resumed in empty stadiums.

A September start made for a congested fixture list with the summer’s delayed Euro 2020 finals not allowing for a second successive extension.

Injuries have inflicted most squads with Burnley no exception.

Taylor has taken his turn in the treatment room as he missed a run of games following the turn of the year.

But the 27-year-old has been back since the middle of last month.

And after tasting defeat just once in four games since re-claiming the left-back berth following an injury to Erik Pieters, Taylor has just two thoughts in mind as the Clarets reach a year since playing in front of supporters: getting over the line to guarantee top-flight safety and closing the chapter on a trying time for everybody.

“It’s been an up and down season in terms of the team and me personally,” admitted Taylor, who was back towards his best in the mid-week draw against Leicester City which leaves Burnley just one point shy of 30 as they go in search of a first league double over Arsenal since the 1962/63 season at Turf Moor today.

“I’ve had good games and bad games and had injuries and been fit. It’s been up and down but I want to try and stay fit now until the end of the season and help the team push up the table, get as many points on the board as we can and be a Premier League team next year.

“I think this season has been difficult on a lot of fronts; on injuries, the restrictions around the training and match-days.

“It’s been a year like no other and hopefully it’s a one-off and something like this never happens again.

“Let’s have a good run and finish to the season, secure our Premier League status, hopefully be a Premier League team next year and be able to welcome fans back to Turf Moor.”

And so say all of us.