THE out-dated Vicarage Road pitch will not be replaced following next summer’s Sir Elton John concert.

It was initially hoped Watford would be able to replace the stadium’s Desso playing surface following the music star’s gig but the club lack the finances to replace the surface completely.

Today (Friday), Watford announced that their former chairman’s concert to raise money for player transfers will take place on Saturday, May 29 and the club’s head of customer sales, Michael Jones, explained that the event will be held earlier than the 2005 gig to give the pitch more time to repair before the 2010 season.

Jones said: “We will be able to do the concert before we do the normal summer work because the event is on May 29, it is a bit earlier than before.

“So rather than seeding and then putting the stage on top, the seeding will be done afterwards, so we are anticipating no real damage to the pitch at all.”

Chairman Jimmy Russo added: “The Desso pitch will have to have more work done to it because we are not in a financial position to put a brand new pitch in at this stage.”

The money from the concert will go towards player transfers and manager Malky Mackay claims the added cash may enable the club to sign targets who otherwise may have gone elsewhere.

Mackay said: “It is a great gesture from a man that is Watford through and through and to have Sir Elton John perform at Vicarage Road is something everyone at the club is looking forward to and it should be a great occasion.

“The budget needs to be followed properly but we have a recruitment department searching for players and if extra funds become available for that, then we may be able to get targets that we otherwise may not have got.”

Watford have brought in former projects director Paddy Flavin, who was made redundant earlier this year, to help organise the concert, as he did in 2005.

Admission will be £55, £75 and £100 and full details on how to obtain tickets when they go on sale on Monday, November 9 will be announced next week.

Although season ticket holders will be given priority, Jones claims the club will be relaxing the conditions this time around.

He said: “The thing that was so good about it last time was that it was a very Watford-orientated event, everyone was wearing yellow on the night.

“We want to make it that way again. We absolutely want to give season-ticket holders priority but we will be relaxing the conditions on quantities they can order etcetera based on the feedback we had last time.”

It is almost a year since Sir Elton gave up his honorary life president title in protest at the way the club was being run and Russo said he is “delighted” to have the superstar back involved with the club.

The chairman said: “It is all pluses. We have got one of the biggest superstars in the world, who is local, interested in the club, listens to all the games, speaks to the manager and talks to my brother [vice-chairman Vince Russo] on a regular basis.

“It is an honour to have someone like Elton John as life president of this football club. I see absolutely no downside at all because he has never criticised the football club. He has criticised members of the board in the past and he is entitled to do so and he demonstrated his dislike at the time by leaving.

“Sir Elton John is always welcome to come to any game he likes and I hope he is life president for another 100 years.”