Rochdale chairman Chris Dunphy insists Tottenham superstars will play on 'perfect' Spotland pitch

EXCLUSIVE
Pitch imperfect: Pochettino has voiced his concerns over the state of the playing field
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Tom Collomosse9 February 2018

Rochdale chairman Chris Dunphy insists his club’s controversial pitch should hold no fears for Tottenham’s players despite Mauricio Pochettino’s concerns for their safety.

The Spurs manager was alarmed when he saw pictures of the League One club’s heavily-sanded playing surface, which will stage the FA Cup fifth-round tie a week on Sunday, and suggested that holding the fixture at Spotland was a danger to the health of the players.

Yet Dunphy, whose club are in regular contact with the Football Association, who are very reluctant to consider switching the tie, says he can “guarantee” that the match will not be moved to another venue. “We are in touch with the FA and we will be playing that game at Spotland,” he told Standard Sport.

“We would never do anything that would endanger the safety of our players. It is the referee’s opinion that counts but we do not have a problem for Saturday's League One game against Fleetwood.

“People who are saying the pitch is like a pudding have never been anywhere near it. It has played very well.

“I can guarantee the game will be played at Spotland. The pitch will be perfect for the Spurs superstars.”

Dunphy then joked: “It just depends whether they want to play us!”

The Pennine area, where Rochdale is located, suffered a period of particularly bad weather late last year — and the pitch suffered. To try to ensure it is ready, the playing area will be covered by a ‘tent’ for the whole of next week and warm air will be directed onto the surface to try to improve it.

Rochdale have used the ‘drill and fill’ technique approved by the Football League, which involved drilling more than 100,000 holes into the pitch and filling them with sand in order to drain away the excess water.

The pitch was passed fit for the fourth-round replay against Millwall earlier this week, which Rochdale won 1-0.

Pochettino planned to discuss the matter with Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy on Thursday, but the FA are not minded to consider changing the fixture.

They believe that to do so would set a dangerous precedent for future ties, when the bigger club may be unhappy with conditions at a lower-league ground. The governing body provide subsidised pitch protection to clubs involved in the Cup who experience problems with their pitches.

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