United's match at Zorya expected to go ahead amid frozen pitch fears

Manchester United's Europa League group match at Zorya Luhansk is expected to go ahead as planned on Thursday following concerns over the state of the pitch.

The Slavutych Arena, situated in the eastern corner of Ukraine, was found to have a frozen pitch when United players were put through their paces on Wednesday, but Zorya and UEFA officials have allayed fears that the tilt could be called off.

"Everything depends on the weather," a Zorya spokesman told ESPN FC's Mark Ogden on Thursday morning.

"The pitch is not brilliant at the moment, but we are expecting temperatures of 2-3 degrees (Celsius), so everything should be OK."

A UEFA representative told the Guardian's Jamie Jackson: "The pitch is at its coldest now, it's only going to become warmer as the day goes on."

UEFA came under fire from United manager Jose Mourinho after he surveyed the conditions at Zorya, suggesting the governing body should reassess its scheduling when addressing fixtures set in areas more prone to adverse weather.

"I think UEFA know the conditions of the pitch and everybody knows that in mid-December the conditions in Ukraine and eastern Europe are more difficult," said Mourinho.

"So if UEFA was worried about it, they should change the fixtures and not allow the last fixtures to be played in mid-December."

A draw would be enough to confirm United's route into the Europa League's last-32, but three points in Ukraine could see it progress top of Group A if Fenerbahce fails to win at Feyenoord.