Andros Townsend has become the latest Premier League star to insist the season must be completed - because there is too much riding on it.
The Premier League meets on Thursday to decide whether the current campaign - postponed until at least April 4 - will be finished or voided with the UK in the grip of the Coronavirus crisis.
Townsend has joined the many players convinced the season must be resolved though.
“One way or another this season has to finish,” he said. There’s too much riding on it with sponsorship, TV money, players’ contracts and bonuses.
“The fans have paid season tickets and subscriptions for Sky and BT and those sort of things.
“So one way or another the season has to finish, whether it’s in May or June, or later in September, October or November.”
Townsend’s Crystal Palace side have defied pre-season expectations of a relegation fight to sit 11th in the table, six points off what could be a Champions League place with seven games to go.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Townsend added: “Selfishly, Crystal Palace would like the season to finish.
“We’re a couple of points off the European places and we’re safe from relegation, so of course we’d like to finish the season and see how well and how high up the table we can finish it.
“When this was first put forward a few weeks ago while we were still playing, most of us thought, ‘no we don’t want to play without fans, without the fans football is nothing’.
“But we’re in a situation now where there’s no football, and I think when we restart it’ll be a choice between no fans or no football at all.
“So if they are the two options, then of course you’ve got to play behind closed doors.”
