Andorra la Vella (Andorra), Oct 8 (AP) England got a feel for Andorra's artificial pitch as Gareth Southgate's side trained ahead of Saturday's World Cup qualifier.

The road to Qatar continues this weekend against the side ranked 156th in the world at the Estadi Nacional.

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Wales raged about the plastic pitch after a European Championship qualifier in 2014, with Gareth Bale saying it was "by far the worst (pitch) I've ever played on".

But Southgate has a more positive perspective, hoping that the plastic pitch will benefit his side's desire to pass the ball with speed.

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"We've played on some really difficult grass pitches where teams have kept the length of the grass long and we weren't able to move the ball quickly. So for us to have a surface where you know the ball can move quickly is good.''

The Andorran Football Federation said it was improved last year to what an official called a "hybrid surface" but it remains to be seen whether Southgate alters his selections with the pitch in mind.

All 24 players trained in the Pyrenees on Friday lunchtime, although Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins did some individual work. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)