Slaven Bilic keen to clarify importance of West Brom and Leeds United promotion bids

Bilic's Baggies and Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds United hold commanding positions in the Championship's automatic promotion spots with just nine games remaining.

Both clubs, though, have seen their pushes for the Premier League halted by the ongoing global fight against coronavirus which has the EFL season currently suspended.

The EFL hope to conclude all their remaining games in a 56-day period over the summer months - including the play-offs - with the EFL working on an assumption that matches will be played behind closed doors.

Bilic - who has played games behind closed doors in Yugoslavia and Turkey - admits the concept would be strange but the 51-year-old is looking at the bigger picture within football and more than just promotion.

“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.”

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