Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium has taken another step towards completion as work commenced today (Tuesday) on the installation of the pitch at the venue.
The grass surface has been prepared in the Netherlands, with members of the English Premier League football club’s groundstaff based there over the past two months to ensure the pitch was in optimum condition ahead of its arrival in London.
The hybrid stabilised turf, reinforced by polypropylene strands, is similar to the pitch at Tottenham’s old White Hart Lane ground and will be installed on three retractable trays that will slide under the South Stand section of the stadium when NFL American football games are played at the venue.
The turf is being transported to the UK in 23 refrigerated lorries over the course of the next three days. The Evening Standard newspaper said it could take up to a month for the pitch to fully bed-in, adding it is believed it would be playable within a fortnight.
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has recently said he is “confident” his team will play in the 62,062-seat stadium (pictured in July) before Christmas, with the Standard stating Burnley’s Premier League visit on December 15 increasingly appears to be the potential opening game.
The stadium had initially been due to host Tottenham’s Premier League match against Liverpool on September 15. That match was played at Wembley, and the club’s league games against Cardiff City on October 6 and Manchester City on October 29 have also been moved to the national stadium.
Tottenham’s three home UEFA Champions League matches against Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven and Inter Milan have also been confirmed for Wembley, while the club played its EFL Cup match against Watford last week at Stadium MK, home of League Two team MK Dons.
Spurs have previously cited problems with the stadium’s critical safety systems as a reason for the delay in the move to the facility, which was scheduled to open in time for the start of the 2018-19 season.
Image: Hzh
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