If Leeds United have to play behind closed doors it will be 'surreal' but not new for Barry Douglas

The Scot packed his bags and left the British game behind in 2013, signing for Polish side Lech Poznań and spending three seasons at Stadion Miejsk.

Their first game of the 2014/15 Ekstraklasa was played behind closed doors due to the setting off of flares in a game during the previous campaign.

After winning the league and the Polish Super Cup, he moved to Turkish Süper Lig outfit Konyaspor, with whom he won the Turkish Cup.

He recalls occasions in Turkey where fans were not permitted into games as difficult affairs and says it would feel strange, if not totally unfamiliar, to conclude the season in empty stadia.

“I played behind a few closed doors in Turkey with the fans getting bans,” he said. “It won’t be a new experience for me but it’s a difficult atmosphere when there’s no fans. There’s no atmosphere. It’s hard. When you need that bit of energy that helps keep you going and pushes you on. It’ll be a surreal moment if it comes to that.”

But the lack of fans and the noise they generate should not, in Douglas’ estimation, mean a lack of motivation.

“It’s perspective, how you anticipate the game and set up for it,” he said.

“Obviously it’s important to have the fans but if there’s still three points at stake to go towards our end goal then we have to treat every game like it’s a cup final with our fans in the stadium.”

The prospect of football is not one Douglas is obsessing over, however.

“It’s hard not to think about it or be desperate to get back but we just need to let the bodies who deal with all these things make those decisions and just focus on what we can do at the present moment,” he said.

“It’s out of our control. It’s just going to frustrate us if we keep looking at the future and if and when we can get back.”