CWC complaints: hot weather and rabbit-like balls

The FIFA Club World Cup is heating up, literally. Not only the tournament is in full swing now and we have interesting match ups in the battle for the Round of 16, but we also have a raise in temperature. The weather in the USA is not doing any favors to the teams, and according to the European coaches, the weather is the main reason why the South American clubs have so far dominated, and not the actual quality of the opposition. And the latest one to complain about the elements is Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca.

After losing to Flamengo in Round 2, the Blues need a win to secure the second spot which leads to the elimination phase but they will face hard conditions agains Tunisian Esperance. The weather in Philadelphia is reaching it’s highest numbers since 1994 and the player had to train at the 36C temperature, while the estimated forecast for the kickoff time is 38C. Chelsea’s players engaged in some light exercises next to two gigantic fans blowing on full blast with mist settings. They also tried to train as far over to one side of the pitch as possible as it was the only area partially shaded. At 11 in the morning, the temperature was 36.

“We are not training almost. We are just doing very, very, very short sessions. It is almost impossible to train or to make a session because of the weather. Now we are trying just to save energy for the game. This morning’s session has been very, very, very short. It’s not easy in these conditions with these temperatures. We are going to try to do our best. I always try to be honest. It’s not about excuses, it's about reality. It’s an excuse when it’s not hot and we say that it's hot. That is an excuse. But if hot, it's hot. It's difficult to work with these temperatures but we are here and we trying to do our best and we will try to win. Now in terms of the session, it’s impossible to do a normal session, otherwise you don’t save energy for the game. We did the session this morning, it was quite short, we prepared for the game and we will try to do our best to go to the next stage” said the Italian.

CWC: No problem for PSG, the Parisians are in the Round of 16

The next big thing in this World Cup is the quality of the pitch. It’s not a secret that football is not the most popular sport in the USA, so the soccer pitches are nowhere near the ones in Europe or South America. After an easy 2-0 win in Seattle against the host, PSG coach Luis Enrique felt the need to talk about the state of the pitch.

"What matters is the state of the pitch. And I say that today, even though we won. We're a long way from European stadiums. They're good, but the ball bounces like a rabbit. Today, since it was an artificial pitch before, and now a natural pitch, you have to water it by hand and it dries out in 10 minutes. It's an obvious problem, it's not an excuse. We can't play at the level we want to. And FIFA has to take that into account. Not only in stadiums, but also during training camps. I can't imagine an NBA court with holes. We play in stadiums where the ball looks more like a rabbit than a ball. If we have to criticise, it deserves to be changed" said the Spaniard.

FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP 2025

Matchday 3

Monday

Atletico Madrid - Botafogo 1-0 (0-0)

/Griezmann 87/

Seattle - PSG 0-2 (0-1)

/Kvaratskhelia 35, Hakimi 66/

Tuesday

Inter Miami - Palmeiras 2-2 (1-0)

/Allende 16, Suarez 65 - Paulinho 80, Mauricio 87/

Porto - Al Ahly Cairo 4-4 (1-2)

/Mora 23, Gomes 50, Aghehowa 53, Pepe 89 - Abou Ali 15, 45+2 pen, 51, Romdhane 64/

22:00: (50.0) Auckland (25.0) Boca Juniors (1.01)

22:00: (4.65) Benfica (3.20) Bayern (1.95)

Wednesday

04:00: (12.0) Esperance (5.40) Chelsea (1.28)

04:00: (4.90) Los Angeles (3.60) Flamengo (1.75)

22:00: (1.22) Dortmund (6.50) Ulsan (12.0)

22:00: (4.10) Mamelodi (3.50) Fluminense (1.90)