Football News : UEFA representative defends San Siro pitch

By ESPNsoccernet staff

UEFA's director of competition, Giorgio Marchetti, has insisted the surface at the San Siro is "acceptable" after Barcelona lodged an official complaint.

GettyImagesBarcelona complained about the quality of the playing surface at the San Siro

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Barca contacted UEFA following their 0-0 Champions League quarter-final first leg draw with AC Milan on Wednesday as they felt the quality of the playing surface hindered the match.

They are not the first to raise questions over the San Siro pitch, with Arsene Wenger saying it was "unacceptable for UEFA to accept pitches like the one in Milan" after Arsenal exited in the previous round of the competition.

However, Marchetti says the pitch problems are unavoidable at present.

"The pitch in Milan is a recurring problem of the microclimate inside that stadium and there is nothing more the two clubs can do," he told RadioCalciomercato. "Inter and Milan try to get through the problem by re-laying the turf, but many games are consequently played in less than ideal conditions.

"Having said that, the Stadio Meazza playing surface was acceptable. It's only normal that there is a difference between acceptable and ideal."

Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani said this week that they would speak to Inter about the possibility of "installing a hybrid surface with a synthetic base and natural grass on top".

Marchetti added: "Everyone already knows about this problem and I don't know if it can be resolved quickly. Adriano Galliani spoke about a new type of surface, but it's not up to us to say which is best for the stadium.

"The more games that are played, the more the pitch is broken up. In Amsterdam, for example, they resolved their problem, but it's difficult to find a definitive solution here."