England-Italy pitch 'in bad shape'

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 12 Juni 2014 | 15.36

  • Venue: Arena Amazonia, Manaus
  • Date: Saturday, 14 June - 23:00 BST

Coverage: BBC TV, BBC Radio 5 live and BBC Sport website

England will send a member of manager Roy Hodgson's backroom team to inspect the pitch for Saturday's World Cup opener against Italy, with the head groundsman responsible for the surface admitting: "It is in bad shape."

Pictures have revealed dry, brown marks across the Arena Amazonia turf.

Kevin Bishop BBC News in Manaus

"I've walked around the north side of the pitch at the Arena Amazonas in Manaus. The pitch isn't in an ideal condition at that end but I would say it's not as bad as some reports make out - although I'm no expert.

"There are patches where the grass is parched - brown lines running across the pitch. A small amount of what appears to be sand is visible behind the goal line but I could not see if that was the case on the pitch itself."

"Frankly, Manaus is in bad shape," said Carlos Botella, head groundsman for the Royal Verd company which is responsible for the turf at Manaus.

"The maintenance has been complicated."

Botella added: "There are no roads. All the machinery and materials had to be brought by ship. There was no fertilizer and no seeds.

"Now we have put fertilizer down. We will increase the fertilizing process with biostimulants and seeds to try to get the most out of the grass."

The stadium, which holds 39,118 people, was constructed last year.

It is due to host four World Cup games, including the Group G fixture between the United States and Portugal on 22 June, although this weekend's fixture is by far the most high-profile.

A Fifa source said the problems had been caused by "excessive use of fertiliser" but added that the issue was "largely cosmetic" and there is no threat to the Group D game not taking place.

"The pitch in Manaus has been undergoing treatment in preparation for the World Cup. Over the last three months, mitigation procedures have been put in place and there continues to be significant improvement," said a Fifa spokesman.

England striker Wayne Rooney is unconcerned, saying: "It's the same for ourselves and Italy, so we'll both have to deal with that."

England

A view of the Arena Amazonia, where one area of the pitch is visibly drier than the other

England will train in the gym at their hotel in Manaus on Thursday following their arrival in the city, located in the north-west of Brazil.

Italy do not arrive until Friday, when both sides have scheduled training sessions at the stadium.

After their Group D opener, which kicks off at 23:00 BST on Saturday, England face Uruguay in Sao Paulo on 19 June and then Costa Rica in Belo Horizonte five days later.

The Arena Amazonia

A Fifa source has said the pitch in Manaus is barren in parts because of "excessive use of fertiliser"

The Arena Amazonia

The head groundsman at the Arena Amazonia has admitted the pitch is in "bad shape"


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