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- The MetLife Stadium hosted its first Club World Cup match on Sunday evening
- The pitch was criticised by both managers and players after the game
- Watch every Club World Cup match free on DAZN. Sign Up Now
The pitch that the Club World Cup final will be played on has been criticised following a goalless stalemate between Porto and Palmeiras in New Jersey.
The MetLife Stadium is the chosen venue for next month’s final as well as the World Cup final next year, and it had its first taste of Club World Cup action on Sunday night.
However, Brazilian wonderkid Estevao – who will join Chelsea from Palmeiras ahead of next season – was left unimpressed by the condition of the pitch.
‘I think the pitch should have been watered a little more as the ball was a little slow which interferes with the pace of the game,’ he explained.
‘It was both for ourselves and for Porto. As the game went on, it rained which made it roll a bit faster.’
Palmeiras boss Abel Ferreira added: ‘In the beginning, the pitch was dry. I don’t know who is the patron saint for rain but after it rained it then enabled us to play our game.’
Porto and Palmeiras were critical of the MetLife Stadium pitch after Sunday’s game
Brazilian wonderkid Estevao branded the pitch ‘slow’ while the turf was also blasted for being ‘dry’
Criticism of the Club World Cup final pitch comes as a fresh blow to FIFA president Gianni Infantino
Meanwhile, Porto coach Martin Anselmi insisted the state of the pitch affected the quality of the match.
‘I do feel like the pitch caused us to be a bit imprecise. This was particularly when we wanted to accelerate the game.
‘There were some mistakes that happened (as a result) but the grass is the same for both teams. We had to adapt.’
The stadium is usually shared by the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets, with the two teams playing on synthetic turf.
However, FIFA rules dictate that this year’s Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup must be played on natural grass.
It appears there is still work to be done to get the conditions up to scratch for some huge matches ahead in the coming weeks and next year.
Concern over the pitch is a fresh blow for FIFA after a difficult start to their newly-expanded tournament.
Two of the opening five matches have failed to see a goal, while there are also reservations that there could be a number of uncompetitive games in the group stages after Bayern Munich thrashed amateur side Auckland City 10-0 on Sunday.
There are also concerns over uncompetitive matches after Bayern Munich beat Auckland 10-0
PSG then beat Atletico Madrid 4-0 in what was expected to be one of the closer matches in the group stages
A clash between European champions PSG and Atletico Madrid was expected to be more competitive on Sunday evening, but the Ligue 1 giants ran out 4-0 winners in the searing heat in California.
Ticket sales have also caused debate, with some matches being nowhere near sold out, leading to FIFA lowering prices in the days before the tournament.
Sunday’s match at the MetLife Stadium had a respectable crowd of 46,275, largely made up of Palmeiras fans after they took over Times Square earlier in the day.
But there were still some empty seats, with the stadium having a maximum capacity of 82,500.
