Dundee United insist they do not want to be handed the Ladbrokes Championship title on a technicality.
The second-tier leaders held a 14-point lead before the coronavirus crisis forced Scottish football into shutdown.
Top flight champions-elect Celtic have a similarly big advantage in the Premiership and Parkhead boss Neil Lennon has called for his team to be crowned champions if the pandemic panic means this season’s campaign cannot be completed.
That threat appears to have lessened somewhat after UEFA announced they would be postponing this summer’s Euro 2020 tournament by a year in order to allow domestic leagues across the continent time to finish.
Tannadice managing director Mal Brannigan has backed that decision, insisting he would rather see Robbie Neilson’s men seal promotion on the back of their efforts on the pitch.
And if that means playing games behind closed doors then so be it.
🎥 Managing Director Mal Brannigan talks to Club TV after today's updates from UEFA on the ongoing COVID-19 situation. #Tangerine50🧡🖤https://t.co/i7yl04gshA— Dundee United FC (@dundeeunitedfc) March 17, 2020
“My opinion, and that of the board, would be that we would like to see the season through,” said the Terrors chief in an interview published on the club’s Twitter account. “I know the statement that has come through from UEFA very much gives us a bit of clear run as regards getting the league campaign finished.
“We can see the (Euro) 2020s will be held in 2021 and we’re not quite sure yet what is going to happen with the UEFA competitions, the Champions League and Europa League.
“I think the most important thing is that the national leagues be completed.
“We are top and we have been top since day one. We are 14 points clear and we are there on merit.
“We would like to see the season through and if we are still there by the end of the season then we have deserved to be promoted.
“It is much more important to us as an organisation to have that delivered because of what we have achieved rather than by default.
“That’s one of the other options being discussed, more by fans I think than the football authorities.
“The football authorities have a big job on their hands. They have a number of issues to look at and an enormous amount of intricacies to tie up.
“The current situation is that nobody is quite sure where we can be from one day to another.
“Null and void – I can’t see that happening. If the current positions were allowed to stand I wouldn’t like that either.”
PFA Scotland have already rejected calls for games to be played in empty stadiums, insisting it still leaves their members at risk of contracting the virus.
But Brannigan believes it would be an acceptable last resort to allow the season to be played to a conclusion.
He replied: “I think there has to be that view that the season has to play out.
“If that has to be behind closed doors then there are other stakeholders like the players, SPFL and SFA who will be involved.
“If that is the only option for us to win the Championship on merit then I would like to see that.”
