Yeah I was a bit surprised that it's not a prerequisite for Champions League entry to have an actual grass football pitch. The only other club I remember having one was Luton Town.
Astroturf pitches
- Thread starter Pogue Mahone
- Start date
I've played on both grass and astroturf pitches for a good decade and there are big, big differences. Its not an insurmountable difference, but its healthy to know what exactly the differences are.
Astroturf is VERY hard on the knees. A grass pitch "gives way" more when taking sharp turns and stopping, whereas astroturf has a harder stop. In a published study of US College football, knee ligament injuries are 40% more common on astroturf than regular grass pitches.
Preferably you also want special football shoes with studs made for playing on astroturf. I saw Shaw and more slipping around a bit in the early parts of the game for no good reason other than loosing their footing. No idea what shoes the lads wore, but if they were wearing normal studded boots, grip would have been an issue in sharp turn/stop situations.
The synthetic surface needs to be heavily watered before a game so the synthetic grass softens, or else the ball is going to roll a lot less. When Ronaldo scored the 0-1 goal, the ball stopped rolling short way across the goalline because of the surface being dry. The pitch had to be watered again at halftime since it naturally dries up.
The ball behaves differently on astroturf, and thats the big sticking point for me. Young Boys are of course used to playing on this pitch. The ball bounces with a sharper angle than it does on grass, its kinda hard to accurately explain, but its something youre aware of when you actually play. When the pitch is wet, the ball also floats on the surface faster than it does on normal grass, so there's no accurate ball movement like you'd be used to on grass, it's just different. Things like receiving a hard pass or running with the ball, you just expect certain things to happen and a certain fell of the ball when you receive it or run with it. Astroturf throws you off if you're not used to it. Against a Champions League team, of course its going to be a challenge.
None of that takes away from the fact that we were comfortable up to the red card when the playingfield was even. It completely fell appart after that. Young Boys to their credit utilized every bit of familiarity of their pitch conditions and made life very hard for us when they gained the advantage of an extra player.
And regardless of conditions. Jesse Lingard should not have directly assisted a Young Boys winning goal, regardless of situation. Its one of the worst passes I've ever seen in football.
'they should adapt'
It's competition at the highest level, minor advantages can make all the difference. We were coping OK with 11 men, but having fewer passing outlets when we went down to 10 killed us.
Personally I felt we should have been bolder and gone long to Greenwood and Elanga over the top to keep them honest and give more space to the back line and midfield to play the game out but what do I know
It's competition at the highest level, minor advantages can make all the difference. We were coping OK with 11 men, but having fewer passing outlets when we went down to 10 killed us.
Personally I felt we should have been bolder and gone long to Greenwood and Elanga over the top to keep them honest and give more space to the back line and midfield to play the game out but what do I know
We put up with plastic clubs so why not plastic pitches too
I agree that they shouldn’t be allowed in the Champions League.
Maidstone United weren’t allowed one in league 2.
But Villarreal & Atlanta will both win comfortably there, so it’s no excuse
Maidstone United weren’t allowed one in league 2.
But Villarreal & Atlanta will both win comfortably there, so it’s no excuse
It definitely gives an advantage to those playing on astro regularly but the same could be said in the return leg.
exactlyIt's hilarious that there are people in here claiming that they play on a 4g pitch all the time and it's no different to a good grass pitch, that is utter nonsense. You can certainly have the opinion that they are still a good pitch, but they are blatantly different to a proper grass pitch, you notice within a minute of playing on one.
We did beat CSKA twice on astroturf, in 2009 and 2017 so it's not the first time.
But I was surprised to see one in Switzerland as the weather doesn't really necessitate it there.
Grass is hard to maintain in countries with hard winters, and a good quality Astroturf is almost as good as grass. The ball bounce is stop being an issue since tey have been improving it over the years.
But as many pointed on this topic, nowadays almost every club uses hybrid astro + grass anyway, so really not a big factor.
But as many pointed on this topic, nowadays almost every club uses hybrid astro + grass anyway, so really not a big factor.
I know, right? I’ve played on both and train an U13s team that plays some games on grass and some on a brand new 4G pitch. The ball runs a bit truer on astro than a bad grass pitch but a good grass pitch is clearly the best option.
So weird that anyone could kick a ball on both surfaces and conclude there’s no meaningful difference. They are very different.
Nonsense, you can go back to 2009, Parks goal against Arsenal in semi-final of the CL to see that even grass can have the same effect. Carrington im sure have the same surfaces as Young Boys. Train on it leading up to the game. Simple.
No excuses.
My local club, Bromley, has a 4g pitch. We used to book the pitch annually during pre season for a match. I’m guessing they didn’t water the pitch for those games as the skin burns I got on my legs were horrendous. I couldn’t walk for a week or two afters as the skin burns on my knees would scab over and any time I tried to bend my knee it would split it open.
Excruciating pain. The ball had a very weird bounce as well. Definitely had to adapt to reading where and how it was going to bounce compared to a grass pitch.
Excruciating pain. The ball had a very weird bounce as well. Definitely had to adapt to reading where and how it was going to bounce compared to a grass pitch.
Such pitches should be restricted to 5 a side football and hockey. Not on the high profile competitions like Champions League!!
Maybe not the sole reason we lost. But it was horrible to watch. Our players were slipping constantly when they tried to make turns or sprint from standing position.
Maybe not the sole reason we lost. But it was horrible to watch. Our players were slipping constantly when they tried to make turns or sprint from standing position.
For smaller Scottish clubs it's more cost-effective in the long run as they can use their pitch 365 days a year, do all their training and youth development on it, and rent it out at other times. Meanwhile, a grass pitch has to lie idle for much of the year.
Although there is something refreshing in big clubs not getting to play on a perfectly manicured grass pitch every single game, I'm surprised they are allowed at the top table and wonder if it's more to do with the potential alternatives further north. Anyone who is old enough to remember European football in the 1980s and 1990s will recall the often honking condition of some northern and eastern European pitches in midwinter Champions League nights, as the video below shows. I know ground maintenance has come on leaps and bounds, but I presume heavy rain, lack of sunlight, lower temperatures, combined with freeze and thaw conditions, make it a challenge to have a lovely grass pitch in the middle of winter.
Rather artificial than a below par grass pitch. I'm sure our players agree. Yeah it's generally harsher on knees and back but you don't really notice until the next day.
It's also rather strange to have a grass pitch as requirement for playing in the CL as several clubs in Scandinavia and Russia (and apparently Switzerland) play on them. I'm sure they do so elsewhere as well.
It's also rather strange to have a grass pitch as requirement for playing in the CL as several clubs in Scandinavia and Russia (and apparently Switzerland) play on them. I'm sure they do so elsewhere as well.
Correct. Anybody who's played any reasonable amount of football on both grass and artificial grass knows there is a huge difference in pace, bounce and spin on the ball between the two surfaces. Yes players should be able to adapt, but its not as easy as flicking a mental switch - the ball behaves very differently and you have to second-guess every bounce, touch and pass if you're not used to it. Its comparable to playing on different surfaces in tennis (eg grass or clay)
Even if you watched on a black & white TV, you could tell they weren't playing on real grass by the way the ball moved. I think pitch really threw us off our game.
Yeah precisely. I complained about the pitch a few times in the matchday thread before we even scored, the lads looked hugely uncomfortable. Passes bouncing off feet, players loosing footing, etc. It was evident that this was not a comfortable setting.
Nevertheless, we looked completely in control until the red came.
It is sometimes funny watching them try to come to terms with a less than perfect surface.
I just remembered this. Chelsea beating Charlton 4-1 at Stamford Beach.
Should not be allowed in the Champions League full stop.
It is a definite advantage for teams that play their home games on it.
For non league teams who can then rent their pitch out for the times they aren't using it, that makes complete sense financially, but it should be massively different in the premier European competition. Its not OK for League 2, but OK in the CL? righto then.
It is a definite advantage for teams that play their home games on it.
For non league teams who can then rent their pitch out for the times they aren't using it, that makes complete sense financially, but it should be massively different in the premier European competition. Its not OK for League 2, but OK in the CL? righto then.
Im not making excuses. They deserved to win.
Merely pointing out it may have helped that shot go in.
With our ability, we should actually have been able to take advance of such a good fast surface and cut through them.
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Luton's pitch in the 80's was a hoot, the ball bounced about twice as high as normal. They seem better now. QPR had one too I think.
Their pitch looked like it was total trash tbh. Looked like an ice rink for large parts of the match. The standard in the champions league should be higher.
I wasnt on about you directly, im on about the team in general. They cant go and be so abysmal regardless of the surface, of course something can be said if its something that cows had been walking all over during heavy rain.
Didn’t QPR have a plastic pitch as long ago as the late 80’s?