Man United magic despite the mud! Premier League giants forced to play FA Cup tie against Tranmere on awful pitch but put recent troubles aside to take an early lead
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- Manchester United travel to Tranmere Rovers in the fourth-round of the FA Cup
- Fears have been raised over the condition of the pitch at Prenton Park
- Pitch cut up during their third-round replay victory over Watford on Thursday
- Two games have been postponed in recent weeks due to inclement weather
By James Dutton For Mailonline Published: :
fourth-round tie, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer complaining about ‘divots everywhere’ in the buildup.
And groundsmen were frantically trying to move mud off the playing area with heavy rollers and brushes as the League One side took every precaution to make sure the game went ahead.
Manchester United defender Phil Jones was covered in mud after just a few minutes
Jones knew he was in a physical contest when Corey Taylor-Blackett upended him early on
Ground staff tend to standing water in the area surrounding one of the corner flags
Mud is swept off the playing area and past the touchline as groundsmen work doubly hard (A A Rovers groundsman tends to water on top of the cover ahead of Sunday’s afternoon kick-off
The players had to deal with the quagmire pitch which made moving the ball difficult
Two games have been postponed at Prenton Park in recent weeks due to inclement weather and they are desperate not to add a third this weekend.
United Women’s match was called off earlier this month due to a waterlogged pitch, while Tranmere’s third-round replay with Watford had to be put back nine days after Storm Brendan wreaked havoc on the area.
The pitch cut up and patches were evident during the latter stages of Thursday night’s replay victory over their Premier League opponents and concerns have been raised over its suitability.
The area surrounding one of the corner flags resembled more of a quagmire than a football pitch.
Tranmere were earlier forced to cover the pitch at Prenton Park ahead of their FA Cup match
Fears have been raised over the suitability of Tranmere’s quagmire of a pitch
The waterlogged pitch has been protected ahead of the visit of Manchester United
The covers are removed to show bare patches across one side of the Prenton Park pitch
But despite the poor condition of the playing surface, United manager Solskjaer has told his side that they must not use that as an excuse.
‘The pitch is not great but that’s the same for both of us, ‘he said in his pre-game press conference on Friday.
‘The players just have to be focused and ready. There are divots everywhere. This generation coming through with Astroturf and nice pitches get lazy in the heads.
‘So everyone has just got to be focused, both for injuries but also, of course, the bounce of the ball. ‘
The pitch looked in poor condition in Thursday night’s FA Cup replay win over Watford
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