{"id":294278,"date":"2023-10-24T23:24:55","date_gmt":"2023-10-24T23:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/?p=294278"},"modified":"2023-10-24T23:24:55","modified_gmt":"2023-10-24T23:24:55","slug":"guardiola-admits-concern-over-injuries-on-young-boys-plastic-pitch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/soccer\/guardiola-admits-concern-over-injuries-on-young-boys-plastic-pitch\/","title":{"rendered":"Guardiola admits concern over injuries on Young Boys&apos; plastic pitch"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1>Pep Guardiola admits he is concerned over his Man City stars getting injured on Young Boys&#8217; plastic pitch ahead of Wednesday&#8217;s Champions League tie&#8230; as the Spaniard hits out at the surface and insists &#8216;grass is better&#8217;<\/h1>\n<ul>\n<li><span>Manchester City are taking on Swiss side Young Boys in Bern on Wednesday<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>The game will take place on a plastic pitch and Pep Guardiola hit out at this<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong>Follow Mail Sport&#8217;s new Champions League WhatsApp channel for all the breaking news<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Pep Guardiola has hit out at having to play on artificial surfaces as Manchester City prepare to tackle a plastic pitch in Bern tonight.<\/p>\n<p>The Champions League winners can ease towards the knockout stages with victory in the first of a double-header with Young Boys in a stadium that has prompted criticism. Manchester United have twice complained about the pitch, in 2018 and 2021, and a concerned Guardiola claimed that he was left \u2018hoping\u2019 for no fresh injuries ahead of Sunday\u2019s derby at Old Trafford.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Grass is better,\u2019 the City boss said. \u2018Because 99.9 per cent of the teams who play in high level play on grass, otherwise UEFA and FIFA would decide to play on artificial pitches. It\u2019s common sense.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Guardiola took the unusual step of having his team train out in Bern tonight, which goes against their habit of holding a session at home before travelling. \u2018This is an exception,\u2019 he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Any team that plays here is not used to it. It suits the Swiss league and in the Champions League the teams that come here have to adapt. We will not be the first in this situation. If UEFA allows games to be played here it\u2019s because it\u2019s in good condition.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/24\/22\/76957559-12668293-image-a-25_1698183823335.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Pep Guardiola has hit out at having to play Swiss side Young Boys on a plastic pitch tomorrow<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/24\/23\/76957561-12668293-Guardiola_admitted_he_is_worried_about_his_side_picking_up_injur-a-43_1698187300743.jpg\" height=\"427\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Guardiola admitted he is worried about his side picking up injuries and said &#8216;grass is better&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Jack Grealish is pushing for a start, with much debate as to whether Jeremy Doku\u2019s form since signing from Rennes has nudged aside the England star who has just returned from injury.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I don\u2019t have any doubt about Jack and his quality,\u2019 Guardiola said. \u2018We need him. We cannot wait for him to get rhythm, so he has to do training and continue, he\u2019ll get there.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>Guardiola hinted Grealish needs longer rehabilitation from setbacks than team-mates and told the 28-year-old to start fighting his way into the side.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2018His body needs rhythm because he\u2019s strong, he\u2019s not like Phil (Foden) or Bernardo (Silva) who only need two or three training sessions.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2018We are going to use him when we believe he is going to help us.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Everybody knows he is in competition (with Doku) so he has to fight.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It is strange, you are competitors and enemies during the week and then you have to be brothers at the weekend.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/24\/22\/76957567-12668293-image-a-27_1698183885739.jpg\" height=\"423\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>He also hailed Jack Grealish despite the England star falling out of favour in recent weeks<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2023\/10\/24\/23\/76957577-12668293-Meanwhile_Manuel_Akanji_hit_out_at_refereeing_standards_after_hi-a-21_1698185244303.jpg\" height=\"434\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Manuel Akanji hit out at refereeing standards after his red card against Brighton<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, City defender Manuel Akanji hit out at refereeing standards after his red card in Saturday\u2019s win over Brighton.<\/p>\n<p>Akanji was sent off late on for a second yellow card for bringing down Ansu Fati and misses the clash with Manchester United.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018It wasn\u2019t even a foul,\u2019 the defender said. \u2018I touched him a little bit on the hip but let go of him.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018He takes two steps, falls down, and the ref thinks it\u2019s a second yellow.\u2019<span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>MANCHESTER CITY (Probable 4-1-4-1)<\/span>: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol; Rodri; Foden, Alvarez, Kovacic, Grealish; Haaland.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/i\/pix\/2017\/08\/02\/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png\" width=\"636\" height=\"90\"><br \/>\nSource: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sport\/football\/article-12668293\/Pep-Guardiola-Man-City-Young-Boys-Champions-League-Spaniard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pep Guardiola admits he is concerned over his Man City stars getting injured on Young Boys&#8217; plastic pitch ahead of Wednesday&#8217;s Champions League tie&#8230; as the Spaniard hits out at the surface and insists &#8216;grass is better&#8217; Manchester City are taking on Swiss side Young Boys in Bern on Wednesday The game will take place [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294277,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Guardiola admits concern over injuries on Young Boys&amp;apos; 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