RONNY DEILA has admitted the state of the Hampden Park playing surface may force him into a tactical rethink ahead of today's Old Firm League Cup semi-final.
The pitch at the national stadium, which was re-laid after its use in the Commonwealth Games, has been used for Queen's Park matches since last month but it has been softened by the recent cold snap and deteriorated badly during yesterday League Cup semi-final between Dundee United and Aberdeen.
"The pitch might influence my team selection," the Parkhead boss said. "I walked over it on Wednesday and we have to be aware of it. I have to take every condition into my head.
"The pitch is not the best so that will be a factor. There was a game on Saturday as well so it will be worse on Sunday. But a good team can win on a good, bad or artificial pitch. And we are a good team."
Dundee United boss Jackie McNamara, whose side booked their place in the March showpiece with a 2-1 victory against Aberdeen, admitted he had been disappointed with the quality of the surface. "I thought we would see a lot more quality," said McNamara. "You could see at times when we were breaking, it looks like a poor pass when it's bobbling up. And you can see yourself how hard it was to run with it - even when they moved their standing foot it was cutting up behind them. I saw Del [McInnes, the Aberdeen manager] getting frustrated earlier in the game too, like myself. It should make it interesting tomorrow!"
"I'm not making excuses, we'd heard that the pitch was poor," was McInnes' verdict. "As the game goes on it's cutting up, the turf's just coming away. On more than one occasion it was difficult for both teams. Clearly it is not a true bounce and it is cutting up. It is no excuse though. It was the same for both sets of players, both sets like to pass the ball."
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