Like Xavi, Ancelotti complained about the pitch and Quique Flores about playing “on Monday”

Xavi Hernandeztechnician of FC Barcelona, complained about the state of the pitch at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez after his team’s goalless game against Getafe. Aware of having a reputation as a complainer, dating back to his days as a footballer, of speaking critically of playing fields that were detrimental to the culé style of play, Xavi expected and, preemptively, warned that ” it’s not an excuse”. However, the rain of teasing and mocking comments did not wait in some media, especially when he also pointed out that his team was also accused of playing for an hour all day, something that he is not used to. Xavi’s critical point on the state of the field is not exclusive, even if it sometimes seems that way. It didn’t elicit the same reaction, but other prominent coaches voiced similar complaints to those of the culé coach last year. Among them is Carlo Ancelotti, Real Madrid coach, who went a little further by denying that playing under what conditions football is.

XAVI HERNANDEZ

“It’s not a reason, but the state of the grass is hurt”

Xavi Hernández spoke about the pitch and even the daylight hours of the game at Getafe during his explanation of Barça’s goalless draw on Sunday. The allusion earned him a teasing response from his azulon colleague, Quique Sánchez Flores, by recommending “after the sun” for the extra sun. This was Xavi’s argument. “We were very hurt by the state of the grass. On Saturday we trained on a dry field in Barcelona because we knew about this situation. I was criticized a lot because of the issue of the surface, but everyone saw it. It’s very difficult to play like this. It’s bad for in the show. The ball is stuck, it’s bad even for Getafe. It’s important that it’s in good condition. Without wanting to be a reason, we’re not used to playing at this time, but rather at night, it’s a evidence”.

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Carlo Ancelotti

“It’s not football, it’s another sport”

The coach of Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti, asked if the Cup round of 16 match won by his team (0-1) in Cáceres at the beginning of 2023 was “football”, referring to the state of the pitch of the Príncipe Felipe Stadium “You can’t play, we’re not good at it. This for me is not football; This is another good sport because small teams can compete with bigger teams. It’s good for the fans, but they also want to see football being played”, he joked.

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JURGEN KLOPP

“How can this happen? The field is dry”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp made a disparaging reference to the Craven Cottage pitch on the opening day of the Premier League season as Liverpool drew against newly promoted Fulham. “We got a point in a really bad game. How can that happen?’ The field is dry.”

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THOMAS TUCHEL

“It might sound like an excuse, but it’s hard to play here”

At the end of last season, Thomas Tuchel, while still in charge of Chelsea, lost to Arsenal at Stamford Bridge, 4-2. “Playing here is difficult, it may sound like an excuse, but it is a very, very difficult field as we have it. It is not in our favor. The ball bounces very clumsily,” lamented the current coach of Bayern Munich at the time.

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QUIQUE SANCHEZ FLORES

“Playing on Monday is disrespectful to our fans”

Also Quique Sanchez Flores. who joked on Sunday about Xavi’s complaints about Getafe’s grass and sun, has regretted playing Monday matches in the past. It was in 2011, when he was coach of Atlético de Madrid. “I like to open the day, not close it. It seems to me that our fans deserve respect. Playing on Mondays is uncomfortable for our fans. The greatness of our entity does not deserve that day,” he complained then. “It’s boring to play on a Monday. In Spain, football is prepared for everyone except the spectators,” he added.