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Pellegrini concerned by ´high risk´ pitch

SoccerNews in English Premier League 1 Aug 2014

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Manuel Pellegrini fears the state of the TCF Bank Stadium pitch poses a “high risk” of Manchester City players being injured on Saturday.

The Premier League champions will face Olympiacos in the International Champions Cup in Minneapolis this weekend as they continue their preparations for the new season.

City boss Pellegrini has voiced his concerns over the state of the playing surface ahead of the game, with temporary grass having been laid over the all-weather pitch.

The Chilean said at a press conference on Friday: “I think the pitch is not in a normal condition and I think it has a high risk for the players to get injured.

“I have the safety of all my players in mind regarding the possibility of injury so this will not affect my team selection. The condition also means it will be difficult to play good football.

“We played at Yankee Stadium against Liverpool and though the pitch wasn’t perfect, it was better and we had a good match. I’m sure there will be efforts to improve the pitch over the next 24 hours and I’m sure it will be watered, but there isn’t much time left..”

Pellegrini revealed that midfield duo Samir Nasri and David Silva are expected to feature against the Greek champions and he is encouraged by the manner in which his side are shaping up ahead of the new campaign.

“I’ve been delighted with pre-season so far and I feel we have improved with each game we have played during our time in the USA,” he said.

“We have two weeks before the start of the Premier League and we are doing well. We are trying to get our team ready for the new season by giving them as many minutes on the pitch as possible as equally as we can.

“We are building towards our first game of the season and things are going really well.”

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