Albion boss Roberto Di Matteo backed the postponement of Saturday’s match at Blackpool but admitted his frustration.

The Italian was supportive of referee Dave Foster’s decision to call off the game, after extreme sub-zero temperatures in the early hours of Saturday left the Bloomfield Road pitch frozen.

But the boss insisted the Baggies were keen to play the game, which was postponed after Foster made a 10am inspection.

Di Matteo said: “We desperately wanted to play the game, as I think did the Blackpool manager Ian Holloway. But Mother Nature has flexed her muscles over the last couple of days. Blackpool don’t have any covers for their pitch and the referee was quite adamant that the surface wasn’t safe.

“We fully accept that and there’s nothing we can do about it. We won’t see the supporters now until Boxing Day, so I would like to wish them all a Happy Christmas.”

The clubs will speak today to try to re-arrange the match, with the January and February fixture list already crowded.

Tuesday January 12 or Wednesday January 13 might suit Albion, as they currently have a nine-day break between their televised matches against Nottingham Forest on Friday January 8 and Newcastle on Monday January 18.

But a draw in their FA Cup third round match at Huddersfield on January 2 would put paid to the idea, as any replay would be slotted into that gap.