Arsenal face Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday, with the La Liga side hoping to continue their impressive home record
Arsenal will be braced for another pitch battle at Atletico Madrid.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta faces a tough semi final against Atletico on Wednesday night as the Spanish giants have turned their home into a fortress this season.
Tottenham complained the pitch was watered too heavily before their last 16 tie in March and that led to players slipping on the wet surface. Barcelona boss Hansi Flick said the grass was too long before their quarter final to try and slow the game down.
It will be a genuine concern for Arsenal ahead of their semi-final tie as Atletico are underdogs but their 70,000 capacity Metropolitano Stadium could be a huge weapon. The crowd will be passionate and lively while manager Diego Simeone has vast experience of making life difficult for opponents.
There are strict UEFA rules on the state of the pitch which say “the home club must make every reasonable effort to ensure that the pitch is in the best possible condition” and they will undergo strict pre-match checks.
UEFA’s Article 34 also states: “The home club must respect the pitch-cutting guidelines for natural grass pitches. The height of the grass must not exceed 30mm and the entire playing surface must be cut to the same height.
“The height of the grass should be the same for both the training sessions and the match. If deemed necessary by the referee or the UEFA match delegate, the home club may be required to reduce the height of the grass for the match and training sessions.
“The pitch-watering schedule must be communicated by the home club at the organisational meeting. The pitch must be watered evenly and not only in certain areas.
“As a general rule, pitch watering must finish 60 minutes before kick-off. However, upon the decision of the home club, pitch watering may also take place after that time: between 10 and 5 minutes before kick-off; and/or during half-time, for a maximum of 5 minutes.”
That states that Atletico can water the pitch just before kick-off and therefore Arsenal are certain to keep an eye on what happens.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are still waiting on defender Jurrien Timber to return to fitness. The Dutch defender has been a big miss for the Gunners because of a groin injury and he has yet to step up his training levels.
But Timber has done some work and the hope is that he will be able to kick on and be available for the run-in even though his continued absence is a worry for Arsenal and also Holland ahead of the World Cup.
Eberechi Eze has insisted that he expects to be fit after a scare against Newcastle but Kai Havertz is likely to be out for longer but it is not expected to be a serious lay-off.