Source: Daily_Mail
James Milner blasts: Wembley is even worse than a lower-league pitch!
James Milner last night lambasted Wembley's much-maligned pitch and insisted the home of English football deserves a better surface. [LNB]The Aston Villa midfielder was left far from impressed after battling the boggy conditions in Sunday's Carling Cup final defeat while Manchester United striker Michael Owen claimed the poor state of the surface had contributed to him being forced off before the break with a hamstring injury.[LNB] Milner gets another run-out at Wembley on Wednesday when England take on Egypt in a friendly to prepare for this summer's World Cup.[LNB] Complaint: James Milner (centre) wants an improved surface at Wembley[LNB] And, although he conceded the torrential rain in the run-up to Sunday's final had been a major contributing factor to the shocking pitch, Milner has never considered the Wembley grass to be of the required standard. [LNB]Asked about the state of the pitch on Sunday, Milner said: 'It was very difficult actually. It was slippery and was cutting up. Hopefully it can improve because it was not good. You work as hard as you can to get to a Cup final at Wembley and it was probably one of the worst pitches you will play on all season.'[LNB]Injured: Michael Owen[LNB]Milner claimed the Wembley surface was worse than many lower league pitches he has played on, adding: 'It's not (good enough). Hopefully it can be rectified because, when you are growing up, you watch the old finals at Wembley and people used to say it was like a carpet. [LNB]'At a cup final, you want to play at a great stadium, which it is, on a great pitch. But I knew what to expect as I have been there before. It is the home of England. For us, as a team, you want the best surface possible and hopefully it can be improved because at the moment it is not quite there.[LNB] 'If you're comparing it to Arsenal - that's one of the best grounds you can play on. It is a top, top surface. That's obviously a new ground and, if you could get it the same as that, I would be very happy. There had been a lot of rain and maybe it was poorer yesterday but, whenever I have been there before, I've never thought "this is a great surface" to be honest.' [LNB]Owen said of his latest experience with the Wembley turf: 'The pitch was really heavy, so it was never going to be easy, but I was pleased with how I was doing before I had to come off. [LNB]'Unfortunately, I'm probably now going to be out for a couple of weeks. I hadn't played 90 minutes for a while and the manager said to me that not having played for so long was a contributory factor in me being injured on that pitch.' [LNB]TURF WARS November 2007 England lose key Euro 2008 qualifier to Croatia on poorly drained pitch still scarred from NFL match the previous month.[LNB]December 2008 Australian rugby chiefs investigate whether the pitch contributed to two Wallaby players being injured against the Barbarians.[LNB]April 2009 Head groundsman Steve Welch is sacked following outcry over the poor state of the pitch for the FA Cup semi-finals.[LNB]September 2009 Wembley's ninth pitch since March 2007 is laid after sell-out concerts by Coldplay. [LNB]Milner revealed he was also feeling the effects of the Wembley turf after joining up with the England squad yesterday morning. He said: 'I have spoken to a few of the lads here who played in the game yesterday and they feel pretty sapped from the pitch because it was heavy.' [LNB]Inflatable covers and blowers were used for the first time at Wembley to try and dry the surface. A FA spokesman said: 'We had a month's rain in two days before the Carling Cup and we did pretty well to get the match on. Fabio Capello has been pleased with progress we have been making with the pitch.' [LNB]The FA have been forced to replace the turf on nine occasions, at an estimated cost of almost £100,000 a time, since the keys were handed over by Multiplex in March 2007. The pitch was relayed five times last year. [LNB]The FA has teamed up with the Ministry of Defence and the charity Tickets for Troops to provide 100 free tickets for members of the Armed Forces for England v Egypt. Tickets were made available as part of the FA's continued support for the charity, which is providing free tickets for troops to major sporting, music and theatre events. Milner puts himself forward to go back into defence for England boss CapelloManchester United 2 Aston Villa 1: Ref, you got it so wrong! Fury at Phil Dowd reprieve for Nemanja Vidic as Red Devils claim Carling CupGRAHAM POLL: Time for the TV experts to learn the red card laws...ASTON VILLA FC
