Ceni criticizes Fonte Nova pitch after month without a game

Ceni criticized the state of the pitch even after more than a month without games at Fonte Nova. The last match was played on May 30th, in a 2-1 victory over Botafogo, in the Brasileirão.

"[I want] to highlight the lawn, that this lawn can stay idle for twenty days, a month, and it's still the same shit", said Ceni, in an interview with TVE.

The coach has already made similar criticisms on other occasions. In February, he even said that lawn maintenance is only carried out during "business hours".

The site's lawn is managed by a concession under the PPP (Public-Private Partnership) model. The current contract runs until March 2028.

After Ceni's criticism, part of the lawn is being replaced, but maintenance was already planned. According to Arena Fonte Nova, the action takes place annually.

"More intense procedures were carried out, such as decompacting the soil, weekly aeration, leveling correction, fertilization, phytosanitary management and planning for occasional replanting of the northern area of the field, a region that suffers the greatest impact due to the shading of the period", explained Arena Fonte Nova, in a note.

The stadium organization also highlighted that the replanting would be done before the games resumed. "Initially scheduled to take place before the resumption of matches, the replanting of the northern area was rescheduled for the period between July 5th and 10th, due to the inclusion of two new games: Bahia and Montevideo City, held on July 4th, and Bahia x Fluminense, which will take place on July 17th," he said.

"The adaptation of the schedule allowed us to meet the club's new demands and reconcile the holding of the two new events, maintaining the continuity of preventive maintenance, without compromising the technical planning that has been carried out throughout the year", the stadium's statement also says.

Bahia faces Chapecoense in the return of the Brasileirão. The game is valid for the fourth round and was rescheduled for the 17th, at 8:30 pm (Brasília time), at Fonte Nova.

READ THE NOTE FROM ARENA FONTE NOVA

"With the aim of preserving the quality of the field throughout the year, right after the friendly match between Bahia x Montevideo, Arena Fonte Nova will continue with the lawn maintenance schedule. The action, which takes place annually, is carried out in a planned manner and aligned with the Lawn Committee, being essential to guarantee the quality of the field throughout the season.

Still in June, during the window without matches, a special program was created, taking advantage of the longer break for the World Cup. During this period, more intense procedures were carried out, such as soil decompression, weekly aeration, leveling correction, fertilization, phytosanitary management and planning for occasional replanting in the northern area of ??the field, a region that suffers the greatest impact due to the shading during the period.

Initially scheduled to take place before the resumption of matches, the replanting of the northern area was rescheduled for the period between July 5th and 10th, due to the inclusion of two new games: Bahia and Montevideo City, held on July 4th, and Bahia x Chapecoense, which will take place on July 17th. The adaptation of the schedule made it possible to meet the club's new demands and reconcile the holding of the two new events, maintaining the continuity of preventive maintenance, without compromising the technical planning that has been carried out throughout the year

Recognized as one of the main stages of Brazilian football and entertainment in Bahia and the Northeast, Arena Fonte Nova maintains an intense calendar of activities. In this context, periodic lawn maintenance is part of a permanent strategy to ensure the best performance conditions for athletes and provide an excellent experience for the public."

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