WATFORD'S players are having problems with the Vicarage Road pitch.

In recent home games, the incidence of players slipping for no apparent reason has prompted some to reason they are wearing the wrong studs.

Luca Vialli said: "I haven't actually worked that out yet, but you are right. We have not got the right balance yet, and I think it might be because of the lack of the right stud.

"Players now are wearing boots with blades and perhaps they are not the right ones for this surface. This surface is very slippery all the time, and it is not just our players because the opposition also find this difficult. It is a problem.

"We have also been talking to the players about this problem and hopefully we will put it right, but you are correct in that sometimes we give the impression we slip too easily with no pressure.

"We make it difficult for us. It is an amazing pitch. The reserve team played, Saracens played there and now we come out to play and it is immaculate. There must be something that makes it different from other pitches, and that might be what makes us slip all the time. But we have to deal with it because too many times we slip on the floor."

October 30, 2001 15:30