PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor has called on England's top clubs to ease the burden on cash-strapped fans as the recession and unemployment begin to bite hard. "The majority of Football League clubs are finding it extremely difficult to make ends meet but football has a capacity to survive the hard times," he said.

"I just hope the Premier League continues to show care and concern and distribute their money as fairly and evenly as possible so everybody has a reasonable chance of achieving the dream.

"I don't just mean other clubs, I also mean the supporters.

"We need spectators at grounds and we need to show them some respect during the recession.

"Some of them might have had to go without wages, so it might be payback time for football.

"Football is an extremely popular sport. But no sponsor or TV camera would be focused on a ground with no spectators."