Dortmund coach Niko Kovač says MetLife Stadium field more suited to golf than to soccer
And the New York area's summer heat also was inappropriate for high-level soccer.
'It's more a golf green, so you can putt here," Kovač said after Saturday's 3-2 quarterfinal loss to Real Madrid. 'It's very short. But this is not the grass we are used to playing on in the Bundesliga and also in the other two stadiums.'
Dortmund played its opening group match at MetLife, the site of the Club World Cup semifinals and championship, and of next year's World Cup final. The German team played two matches at Cincinnati's TQL Stadium and its round of 16 game at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
'As you saw, the watering wasn't good enough, I would say, because you don't have the devices for that." Kovač said. 'When it's too dry, it's unbelievable. It's sticking.'
On a sunny afternoon, the temperature at the 3 p.m. kickoff was 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) in East Rutherford. Similar temperatures or higher are expected for next year's World Cup, where 11 venues are in the U.S., and most do not have roofs or air-conditioning.
During the 1994 World Cup, 28 of 52 matches had kickoff times from noon to 2 p.m. EDT, better for European viewing. Kickoff times for next year's 104-game tournament are likely to be set after the draw in December.
'We played two times in Cincinnati. The first time it was 12 o'clock. The second time it was 3 p.m. and the pitch we had temperatures of around about 45 degrees (113 degrees Fahrenheit)," Kovač said. 'When the temperature is 45 degrees, this is not amazing. This is very hard for someone, and the players, they must play these games.
"Today, we had 35 degrees (95 degrees Fahrenheit). It's also not much better, to be honest. But, OK, this a tournament we need to play. And I would suggest — my suggestion, that the kickoff time will be a little later. ... So the intensity is also much higher. And as a supporter, as a spectator, you would like to see intensive, aggressive, up-and-down football. So when it's too hot, then it's difficult to play this kind of football.'
___
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Youthful Chelsea ready for Thiago Silva reunion at Club World Cup
Former Chelsea defender Thiago Silva is still going strong at the age of 40 and will lead out Fluminense against the Blues in Tuesday's Club World Cup semi-final (Paul ELLIS) Chelsea's young side are targeting a place in the final of the Club World Cup when they take on Fluminense in the last four on Tuesday, with the Brazilian team marshalled by former Blues defender Thiago Silva who is still going strong at the age of 40. Silva was already a veteran when he signed for Chelsea in 2020 before going on to have an impressive four-year stint at Stamford Bridge. Advertisement One of the finest centre-backs of his generation, Silva arrived after eight years at Paris Saint-Germain and in his first season at Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League. He played 155 games for the London club and left 12 months ago after helping oversee the development of some of the young talents now featuring regularly under Enzo Maresca. "He's a legend of football, a top player," Marc Cucurella, a teammate of Silva's for two years, told English media, adding that the two had exchanged messages about their impending reunion. "We have the opportunity to play against him again and hopefully we can do good things, win this game and play in the final." Advertisement Silva initially made his name at Fluminense, featuring in the team that reached the Copa Libertadores final in 2008 before losing to LDU Quito of Ecuador. He returned there upon leaving Chelsea, once again pulling on the green, red and white of the Rio de Janeiro outfit who won the Copa Libertadores in 2023. The evergreen Brazil international was then reunited earlier this year with Renato Gaucho, the coach in 2008 who is now in his sixth spell in charge. An impressive run at the Club World Cup has seen Fluminense hold Borussia Dortmund in the group stage, eliminate Inter Milan in the last 16 and get the better of Saudi powerhouse Al Hilal in the quarter-finals. Advertisement "If you had asked me beforehand if we would have got this far I would have said we were a long way away from doing so," Silva told broadcaster DAZN after the victory over Al Hilal. "We know the financial size of these teams, the difference is enormous, absurd. But often our collective, the family atmosphere that we have, gives us strength that you maybe don't think you have." - Brazilian opposition again - It is not just Silva raising the average age at Fluminense. There is also 44-year-old goalkeeper Fabio, wing-back Samuel Xavier at 35 and 37-year-old Argentine forward German Cano. Advertisement But the man giving them the X-factor is 27-year-old Colombian winger Jhon Arias, unquestionably one of the players of the tournament. "I have watched some games that they have played and you can see that they are very well organised. They have some very good players. The manager is doing a fantastic job," Maresca said as he prepares to face Brazilian opposition for the third time at the tournament. They lost to Flamengo in the group stage but beat Palmeiras in the quarter-finals in Philadelphia. "The energy from Brazilian teams in this competition has been high -- probably the reason why is because they are at the start of their season while we are finished the season," Maresca added. Advertisement Chelsea now get their first taste of the MetLife Stadium, the hulking 82,500-capacity venue in East Rutherford, New Jersey, just outside New York City. Many of Maresca's players may not have been sure what to make of FIFA's new tournament which came at the end of a campaign in which they finished fourth in the Premier League and won the UEFA Conference League. But suddenly they stand one game from the final, in which they would face either Real Madrid or PSG. With Silva gone, Maresca has been working with a young squad at Chelsea, and the average age of his starting line-up against Palmeiras last Friday was just 24. Advertisement There are more young players coming in too, with 23-year-old Brazilian forward Joao Pedro, formerly of Fluminense, making his debut in the quarter-finals. Brazil prodigy Estevao Willian, 18, will join from Palmeiras ahead of next season and 20-year-old winger Jamie Gittens has just signed from Borussia Dortmund. Moises Caicedo, the midfield linchpin who is still only 23, will return to the midfield against Fluminense after suspension. as/dh
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
PHOTO COLLECTION: Best of Wimbledon Tennis Fourth Round
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus uses an ice pack to keep cool during a change of ends break as she plays Belgium's Elise Mertens during a fourth round women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Sunday, July 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
All-Star Tatis leads the Padres to a 4-1 win against the Rangers
SAN DIEGO (AP) — All-Star Fernando Tatis Jr. scored the tying run in the third inning and doubled in the go-ahead run in the fourth for the San Diego Padres, who beat the Texas Rangers 4-1 on Sunday night to take two of three. Tatis, named to the National League All-Star team for the third time, reached base four times. With runners on first and second and two outs in the fourth, Tatis doubled into the left field corner to bring in Trenton Brooks for a 2-1 lead. Martín Maldonado came around from first, slid headfirst and originally was called safe on Marcus Semien's relay throw to catcher Jonah Heim, but the Rangers challenged and the call was overturned. The Padres failed to capitalize on a bases-loaded situation with two outs in the bottom of the first against Jack Leiter (4-6). But they tied it two innings later when Tatis reached on a leadoff walk, stole second and scored on Luis Arraez's two-out single to center. Maldonado and Jake Cronenworth singled in runs in the sixth and seventh, respectively. Padres rookie opener David Morgan had a rough first inning but allowed the only run thanks to a play at the plate and a great diving catch by Cronenworth with the bases loaded. Leiter allowed two runs and five hits in 3 2/3 innings, with five strikeouts and two walks. Key moment Tatis' RBI double came one pitch after he was brushed back and lost hold of his bat. Key stat Manny Machado, who needs two hits to reach 2,000 for his career, went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts. Up next Rangers RHP Jacob deGrom (9-2, 2.13 ERA), who was named to the American League All-Star team, is scheduled to start Monday night in the opener of a four-game series at the Los Angeles Angels. Padres RHP Yu Darvish, out with elbow inflammation since spring training, makes his season debut. ___
