Wolverhampton Wanderers may be looking a lot more harmonious outfit since Glenn Hoddle arrived but they have yet to hit perfect pitch, if the state of the Molineux surface is anything to go by.
Hoddle is increasingly concerned that his side's promotion chances could come unstuck on a boggy pitch that is starting to cut up alarmingly.
Wolves have played six league matches at home since Hoddle took charge and he has seen his side win only one of them.
Their last match, the 1-1 draw with Sunderland 12 days ago, made playing decent football particularly hard to accomplish.
The club have plans, both short-term and long-term, to counter the problem. Wolves chief executive Jez Moxey said: "We're obviously a bit concerned about the state of it but there's not a lot we can do with it at the moment.
"Suffice to say, we'll be spending a lot more time and money on it during the close season. In fact, to protect the pitch, we've already cancelled the idea of staging a concert on it some time during the summer."
In the short term, for Saturday's match against Gillingham, Hoddle may be concentrating on plans for more of a long-passing game, with more use of his wingers.
"The pitch is not going to be helpful for us and, while I will not be going away from my principles of passing the ball, I might have to tinker with how we're going to play," he said.
Hoddle will be without the focal point of his preferred midfield diamond, skipper Paul Ince. Although Keith Andrews appears to be the obvious replacement, the Wolves boss has other ideas.
He said: "The shape might have to adjust. We might have to play with a bit more width. There's no doubt it's going to be harder to play the way we want to on a dodgy pitch but we're certainly not going to use the pitch as an excuse. I've played on a lot worse."
One consolation, in Ince's absence and with Mark Clyde having returned from Northern Ireland duty last week with tendonitis in his knee, is the return to fitness of Rob Edwards.
The former Aston Villa defender made his first start since last August when he lined up for Wales against Hungary in Cardiff last week. In contrast to how club managers normally feel about international football, Wales boss John Toshack may unwittingly have done him a favour.
Hoddle said: "I didn't expect him to start but it worked out perfectly for us, as he had an hour. He played well, got a lot of confidence from it and I'm glad he came off when he did."
Hoddle has ended any talk of a move for Wolves old boy Dean Richards, who was with Hoddle at Southampton and joined him at Tottenham for £8 million in September 2001.
Hoddle confirmed an initial interest but Richards' absence with a shoulder injury effectively forced him to look elsewhere.
