No Albania pitch problems for England, says Gareth Southgate

Gareth Southgate has played down concerns over the state of the pitch in Albania’s national stadium ahead of England’s World Cup qualifier on Sunday.

The 22,500-seater Air Albania Stadium in Tirana opened just last year and problems have developed with the grass on the playing surface.

A pitch expert from Wales has been drafted by in to carry out emergency work on the turf and the issue will have been a concern for club managers desperate not to lose their players to injury during the international break.

But Southgate is confident the state of the pitch will have improved.

Asked if he has any concerns about the playing surface, Southgate said: “No. Whenever you travel anywhere around Europe now, the stadiums are good.

“I know they have had problems with the pitch, as we did when Wembley first opened.

“But I also know they have been doing a lot of work on that. I am sure it will be better than it was for the matches when the stadium had just opened.”