KAZAN, March 25 (R-Sport) - Rubin Kazan insist their soccer pitch will be ready for the visit of Chelsea in the Europa League next month despite a UEFA order that the game must be played in Moscow because of a poor-quality surface in Kazan.
The first leg of the quarterfinal tie on April 4 is at Stamford Bridge, and the Russians wanted UEFA to allow them to play the April 11 second leg in their home city.
"I want to say that we will do everything possible and impossible to hold the Rubin-Chelsea match on April 11 in Kazan at the highest level," said Pavel Nikulin, the Central Stadium's director.
Rubin are currently appealing the decision to play the match on Luzhniki Stadium's artificial pitch in the capital.
The churned-up turf at the Central Stadium has been replanted with more than six kilos of grass seed and passed fit by the Russian Premier League for the club's next domestic league fixture against Lokomotiv Moscow on Saturday, Nikulin said.
The club had to play their first two Europa League matches of the year at Luzhniki after holding all group games last year in Kazan.
