Barnsley FC Jack Walton on why he is relishing playing in front of an Elland Road full house in particular
Walton was in goal towards the end of a Covid-hit 2019-20 season in a game which had ramifications at both ends of the Championship, with a Michael Sollbauer own goal giving Leeds victory in an empty stadium.
Walton said: "To be fair, we did really well. But we ended up getting beaten. It was a bit strange and empty with no fans there. Obviously, it will be much better with loads of fans.
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Hide Ad"As players, we all want to play in front of big crowds and it should be good.
"We experienced the thing in the pandemic when there was no crowd and that was strange. Playing in front of crowds is why you want to play football. We want to go out and do it for the fans and the game is for the fans and when they are not there, it is a bit strange.
"When you have big crowds, it is really good to play in."
Barnsley head into the game after being given a flea in their eye by Michael Duff for their weekend display against Wycombe.
"All of us would know that we deserved that. But since he has come in, he has been excellent. He is just driving standards. It won't happen overnight, but we’re going in the right direction.
"To a man, we weren't at the standards that we have set this season. We’ve got to learn from it to make sure the mistakes don't happen again."