Pochettino apologises to Rochdale over pitch row

LONDON: Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has apologised to Rochdale after he said their pitch “posed a “massive risk” to his players as it was “not in a condition to play football.”

Spurs, who made an outstanding recovery to draw 2-2 away to Italian champions Juventus in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 clash in midweek, have a slightly less glamorous journey when they travel to thirdtier Rochdale’s Crown Oil Arena in the last 16 of the FA Cup today.

Pochettino criticised the state of the pitch before League One basement club Rochdale spent an estimated £500,000 (RM2.7 million) improving the quality of their turf for the visit of the English Premier League high-flyers.

“I want to apologise to the people in Rochdale, the chairman, and the people who took my comment the wrong way,” Pochettino told reporters on Friday.

“My comment was about the care, first of all for the Rochdale players, our players, and the competition that all of England watches on TV.

“After the replay against Newport, I was with my coaching staff and they showed me a picture from Rochdale’s pitch after their tie against Millwall and it was not in a great condition.

“I was conscious about the FA Cup, the football, and the image that we are going to sell, but the care for the players, too.”

The Argentinian added: “Now, when I see the pictures and videos of the pitch on the Rochdale website, I need to congratulate them because the effort was massive to get it in the best condition to play without risk.

“The conditions are fantastic so I congratulate them. The effort has been massive, and again, I apologise if someone took my words in the wrong way.”

Meanwhile, Rochdale chairman Chris Dunphy said: “I was on the pitch last (Thursday) night, it’s like a snooker table. Tottenham will be very pleased when they see it.

“It all got a bit blown out of proportion. Somebody showed the Tottenham manager a picture of the Rochdale pitch. It’s like showing somebody a picture of a bowl of curry and asking them what it tastes like.

“Until you actually get out there you wouldn’t know what it was like.”

And Rochdale manager Keith Hill insisted his side had not squandered a key component of home advantage by proving Spurs with a Premier Leaguestandard pitch to play on.

“I don’t think we were used to the pitch,” explained Hill. “I think the pitch has hindered us rather than helped us. We’re not helping Tottenham here, we’re helping our future.”