Pitch problems not down to NFL, says Wembley chief
The ESPN FC panel discusses the continued club v country debate between Brendan Rodgers and Roy Hodgson
Wembley’s managing director has admitted that the national stadium’s pitch is below its usual standard and may not be back to its best until next year.
With England’s Euro 2016 qualifier against Slovenia taking place at the stadium on Saturday – six days after an NFL game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Dallas Cowboys – Roger Maslin said the surface “is not as good as it should be”.
However, he denied that playing the NFL match had been the cause of the problems, instead saying that too much topsoil had been placed on the surface in the summer.
“We strive to deliver the best possible surface,” Maslin told the FA website, “so I’m slightly disappointed that the surface isn’t as good as it should be – but I’m confident it will be back to its pristine state after a winter renovation.
“This isn’t so much a problem of the NFL but of our summer renovation. Due to slightly too much topsoil during the summer renovation, there’s more marking and scarring on the pitch than we would want.”
The Desso surface at Wembley has artificial fibres woven into the grass, providing greater durability, and since it was laid in 2010 there have been few of the problems that dogged the Wembley pitch before then.
Last week, England coach Roy Hodgson questioned the FA’s decision to host NFL games at Wembley so close to national matches.
He and Maslin have met for talks on the subject, and the latter added: “Roy is totally entitled to his opinion.
“We have a very good working relationship with the England team, and we’ll be working closely with them this week to ensure we deliver the best possible playing surface for the game on Saturday.
“While the pitch will not be of the very highest standard we want for the Slovenia game, it will still be a good playing surface. We do expect it to be back to its best by March for the Lithuania game.”
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