CELTIC are awaiting reassurances over the state of the pitch in Baku where they are due to play Qarabag in their Champions League qualifier on Wednesday after conflicting claims about its suitability for the match.
The Scottish champions will take a 1-0 lead to Azerbaijan, but the possibility of playing the match as scheduled has been called into doubt by local reports that large parts of the pitch are unplayable. The venue is Azerbaijan's national ground, the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, over 30 per cent of which is completely unplayable, according to those reports.
But the Scot who says he is in charge of the surface has hit back at those reports, saying that, while the pitch is far from perfect, it complies with UEFA regulations. “Qarabag are panicking and have put out stories in the local press which suggest that I am sabotaging the pitch because I am Scottish,” said the man, who asked to be known only as a Scottish ground consultant. “It is a nonsense.
“I have been here five weeks and the job has been a real poisoned chalice. I was dropped right in the deep end.
"The pitch was bad because there was no time to work on it after the European Championship games and we have worked very hard to get it right. Aesthetically speaking, it does not look good. When I got here it was dangerous and that is no longer the case.
“It is firm, but I would say it is covered by 70 per cent grass. I would rate it as a First or Second Division pitch back home towards the end of the season.
“It certainly comes under the Uefa regulations. I get the feeling I will be blamed whoever goes out. If it wasn’t for me there wouldn’t be a pitch.”
A spokesperson for Celtic acknowledged concern about the uncertainty. “We are aware of the issue as regards the pitch in Baku. At the moment, we are seeking reassurances over the quality of the surface.”
Qarabag have already looked at moving the game to Baku's Bakcell Arena stadium, but cannot because fellow Azerbaijani club Qabala play a Europa League tie there the following night against Apollon Limassol and Uefa insist clubs must train in the same stadium 24 hours before the match. Added to Qarabag's dilemma is the fact they started to sell their 30,000 tickets for the game at the weekend and would face a logistical nightmare trying to move the tie.
UEFA have regulations in place for the cancellation of matches in European football both before the visiting teams depart or if it is called off when they are in the country. Their Article 11.01 states: "If the home club finds that a match cannot take place, for example because the field is not fit for play, the home club must notify the visiting club and the referee before their departure from home and the Uefa administration at the same time. In this case, the match must be played at another venue and/or on another date as decided by the Uefa administration after consultation with the home club for the venue and with both clubs (for the date)."
If the UEFA refereeing team wait until Celtic arrive in Azerbaijan and then call it off, the regulations state: "If any doubt arises as to the condition of the field of play after the visiting club's departure from home, the referee decides on the spot whether or not it is fit for play. If the referee decides that the match cannot commence, for example because the field is unfit for play, the match must be played either the next day, or on a reserve date or other date set by the UEFA administration."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel