The grass is simply not good – Julian Nagelsmann on Frankfurt Arena pitch

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann admits concerns over the state of the Frankfurt Arena pitch have left him worrying whether his players will suffer injuries in their final Group A game against Switzerland.

England laboured to a 1-1 draw against Denmark in Frankfurt on Thursday, with players from both teams struggling to keep their feet as chunks of turf cut up.

Governing body UEFA has said a “detailed maintenance plan is in place to address specific issues and further improve quality” ahead of the remaining games at the home of Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt.

While Nagelsmann accepts the teams will have to make the best of the conditions, he has been left less than impressed by the situation.

“I hope that it holds up, but I have little hope. The grass is simply not good – very greasy, very soft,” the Germany coach said at a press conference.

“It is like driving with summer tyres in the winter.

“After the NFL games (held at the stadium), it (the grass) no longer grew well. I am not so worried in terms of playing the game, but what worries me more is in terms of injuries.

“There are players such as (England midfielder Jude) Bellingham that we have seen have had problems and risked some serious injury.

“If you slip, you really risk getting injured, so it is not the best in terms of injury prevention, but this is the situation, these are the starting conditions.

“We must handle them and we must try to do the best we can.”

Nagelsmann added: “There are moments that you have to be prepared for as a player, like when the ball sometimes goes astray or doesn’t roll quite cleanly.

“But we would do well not to just talk about the pitch – you sometimes see a decent game in the district league and the pitch is worse there. I am just worried about the injuries.”

Germany have already secured their place in the last 16, after the hosts followed up their opening win over Scotland by beating Hungary.

Nagelsmann maintains his side must focus on the job in hand against Switzerland on Monday evening rather than worry about which team they might go on to face in the knockout phase.

“You play the games to win. It will be the same tomorrow,” he said.

“We cannot influence who our opponent will be in the knockout round. We want to keep the rhythm.

“This is about winning the game, gaining more confidence and it doesn’t matter who the next opponent is.”