Serie A To Go Synthetic

Serie A matches could be played on synthetic pitches as early as next season following yesterday’s announcement by the Italian Football Federation.Serie A matches could be played on synthetic pitches as early as next season following yesterday’s announcement by the Italian Football Federation.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, FIGC president Franco Carraro said: ‘We need to check that the latest generation of artificial pitches do not have a damaging effect on the environment or player performance.

“We need to establish whether or not the latest synthetic playing surfaces affect the performances of the players, but if they meet with their approval I think an artificial pitch could be used next season.”

As we reported in November (UEFA Give Plastic Green Light), UEFA lifted its ban on the use of artificial pitches for its international club competitions and now several European leagues are considering the use of artificial surfaces for domestic matches.

UEFA’s decision came after two years of experiments on synthetic pitches in five different countries - Holland, Russia, Scotland, Austria and Sweden - where severe winters can cause problems for natural surfaces.

Tests proved that the surfaces were suitable for competitive matches and were a vast improvement on the early plastic pitches that were introduced in the 1980s.

Following a weekend where heavy rainfall and snow affected Serie A’s games, the debate surrounding synthetic pitches is particularly poignant in Italy.

Many of the top clubs do not own their stadiums and are forced to share facilities with other teams. The most obvious example is the pitch at Milan’s San Siro stadium - home of AC Milan and Inter Milan - who frequently blame the uneven playing surface for injuries suffered by their players.

Milan spokesman Alfonso Cefaliello commented: “If the Italian Federation gives us the go-ahead then we would be ready to go. It would solve a lot of problems and halve the costs of maintenance.”

Inter’s Luciano Cucchia added: “We were very sceptical but at the moment an artificial San Siro pitch is something we can’t help but consider. As the field is criticised by our own players and coaching staff, it’s clear we have to do something.”

The Milan clubs training grounds - the Milanello and Appiano Gentile - already have synthetic surfaces.