Burnley boss Sean Dyche 'pleasantly surprised' following German Bundesliga's return

The Burnley boss sat down to take in the Revierderby - the Ruhr rivalry between Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 - as the nation staged its first games since March.

While it was a far cry from what we're used to seeing - with Signal Iduna Park usually accommodating around 80,000 fans - there remained a competitive edge to the behind-closed-doors fixture.

And that pleased Dyche. After watching Erling Braut Haaland, Thorgan Hazard and Raphael Guerreiro (x2) secure a comfortable victory for the title-challengers, he said: "I watched the Dortmund game. I thought it was good, I enjoyed it.

"The tempo was good, although it started as you'd imagine those games would. It had an almost pre-season feel to it; it was a bit slow and methodical.

"Once a few challenges went in and the tempo of the game changed I was pleasantly surprised.

"I wondered whether it [a lack of atmosphere] would affect it, and it does of course affect it, but I thought it would affect it more than it did.

"The delivery of performances was good; it's not ideal with that echoey noise, but if it's football over no football then I'll take it.

"I think that's what most fans are looking for. They'll take the scenario that's given to them within this current situation."

The Clarets returned to the Barnfield Training Centre for the first time in two months as the Premier League stepped up its plans for a return to action.

And with English football set to be played in similar conditions, Dyche said: "It's Premier League planning, it's Government planning and it's club planning.

"If they come to fruition - and the numbers in terms of deaths and those becoming infected decrease - then I think it will work properly and appropriately. That's what we're looking to do.

"The players are aware of that scenario [no crowds]. The feeling of it will be peculiar because the game will mean a lot, but it will feel like a reserve game.

"The way they've adapted to these first few days has been 'well, this is it, let's get on with it', therefore I can only imagine that by the time the games come round they'll be ready anyway.

"They've already accepted the crowd scenario because it's been said for a number of weeks that it will be behind closed doors if it does come back.

"There hasn't been a shortage of media coverage on Covid-19 so they'll be well versed on the possibilities and probabilities."