Press article:

It was impossible to play - 11/12/2002

Nolberto Solano last night insisted that a 50,000-plus Nou Camp crowd would have witnessed a footballing farce had last night's postponed Group A clash been given the go-ahead. However, Newcastle's Peruvian international echoed the feelings of a United dressing room when he admitted the decision to call off the clash with Barcelona would hit loyal Magpies' fans hard.

"People would not have seen a football match in any shape or form had the game gone ahead," argued Solano after south-eastern Spain was battered by heavy rain and intermittent thunderstorms. "The pitch was too sticky, there were puddles everywhere and it was too dangerous. "But will play at any time and anywhere for our supporters and that is why we wanted to play the game the following day. Hopefully that will make things a little bit easier for some of the fans who have come over here." Solano's views were mirrored across the board as United's frustrated players filed out of their dressing room staring in disbelief at last night's monsoon conditions.

England international Kieron Dyer agreed that the game could not go ahead but added: "It's not so bad for the two sets of players because we get well looked after and we'll be ready to play again in 24 hours. "But it's an awful situation for our fans. People have paid a lot of money to get here and that will either be wasted or they will have to spend more to stay on. "The pitch was definitely unplayable and it's just a great shame because we'd been looking forward to the game for so long. "It's a real anti-climax with the manager returning and it was not the way his day was supposed to end."

Solano, who had been struggling with a toe injury in the build-up to last night's clash, added: "Of course everyone's disappointed but nobody can be blamed for what happened - it's out of our hands. It's a difficult situation for everyone concerned but we'll be okay and it won't affect the way we approach the match. At least we have been given the chance to play the game this week. "There was a real problem with the television schedules but we all wanted to get the match played as soon as possible."

Newcastle Journal

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