Barcelona have Chelsea pitch concerns
By Stephen Fry
Barcelona have voiced concerns about Chelsea's pitch ahead of the Champions League tie on 22 February.
Large patches of the playing surface are devoid of grass and Barca defender Silvinho, who was at Arsenal for two years, said: "I cannot believe it.
"I have heard they are making the condition of their pitch worse. I've heard many complaints about the pitch." Chelsea recently said that with two weeks needed to re-lay a pitch it is not feasible to do it this season.
"We are looking at the long term and want to give next season's pitch every chance," said a Chelsea spokesman.
"We have always had problems with the pitch.
"In the past we generally re-lay once during the season and then reseed in the summer.
"But that creates a vicious circle as it makes it harder for the pitch to bed down in the summer."
Therefore, Chelsea have ruled out replacing the pitch for the second time in as many seasons and are set to re-seed the surface in the summer in the hope that it will settle down.
The first leg of the Champions League tie takes place at Stamford Bridge, with the return leg in Spain on 7 March.
The two teams met at the quarter-final stage of the competition last season - in what proved to be an acrimonious encounter. Chelsea won last season's match 5-4 on aggregate but the tie was marred by controversy.
Blues boss Jose Mourinho accused referee Anders Frisk of talking to Barca coach Frank Rijkaard at half-time in Chelsea's 2-1 first-leg defeat at the Nou Camp.
Frisk then announced his decision to retire from the game because he had received death threats and Mourinho was fined and banned for two games over his comments.
Click here to view the latest betting odds on the Champions League at http://www.wagerweb.com
By Stephen Fry
Barcelona have voiced concerns about Chelsea's pitch ahead of the Champions League tie on 22 February.
Large patches of the playing surface are devoid of grass and Barca defender Silvinho, who was at Arsenal for two years, said: "I cannot believe it.
"I have heard they are making the condition of their pitch worse. I've heard many complaints about the pitch." Chelsea recently said that with two weeks needed to re-lay a pitch it is not feasible to do it this season.
"We are looking at the long term and want to give next season's pitch every chance," said a Chelsea spokesman.
"We have always had problems with the pitch.
"In the past we generally re-lay once during the season and then reseed in the summer.
"But that creates a vicious circle as it makes it harder for the pitch to bed down in the summer."
Therefore, Chelsea have ruled out replacing the pitch for the second time in as many seasons and are set to re-seed the surface in the summer in the hope that it will settle down.
The first leg of the Champions League tie takes place at Stamford Bridge, with the return leg in Spain on 7 March.
The two teams met at the quarter-final stage of the competition last season - in what proved to be an acrimonious encounter. Chelsea won last season's match 5-4 on aggregate but the tie was marred by controversy.
Blues boss Jose Mourinho accused referee Anders Frisk of talking to Barca coach Frank Rijkaard at half-time in Chelsea's 2-1 first-leg defeat at the Nou Camp.
Frisk then announced his decision to retire from the game because he had received death threats and Mourinho was fined and banned for two games over his comments.
Click here to view the latest betting odds on the Champions League at http://www.wagerweb.com
