Lokomotiv Moscow’s weather-churned pitch resembled a bombsite and was in no state to host a Premier League match against Zenit, midfielder Andrei Arshavin has said.
Zenit beat Lokomotiv 1-0 on Saturday to take an 11-point lead at the top of the Russian Premier League.
Stars are lining up to criticize the state of the pitches in Russia after Anzhi’s Roberto Carlos and Samuel Eto’o blasted the conditions, while Lokomotiv striker Roman Pavlyuchenko claimed Rubin Kazan’s pitch is fit only for rugby.
“Once in the forest I saw the craters left after the bombing campaigns of the Second World War. In places, today’s pitch reminded me of that stroll,” Arshavin said in comments posted on his personal website Sunday.
“In my view, you can’t hold matches in conditions like that.”
The pitch failed to live up to the standards expected in one of Europe’s leading footballing countries, Arshavin said.
“It’s difficult to call a football pitch like that a reasonable and decent setting to host the championship of a country taking part in Euro 2012.”
Dynamo Moscow midfielder told RIA Novosti earlier this week that the state of Russian football surfaces was down to "circus"-like organization of the football calendar.
Arshavin rejoined Zenit, his boyhood club, in February on loan from English Premier League side Arsenal, and has since played four league games, scoring once and setting up a goal for longtime Russia teammate Sergei Semak.
