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Pep Guardiola raises pitch concerns ahead of Man City Club World Cup final

manchestereveningnews.co.uk

Pep Guardiola has expressed concern at the state of the pitch at the King Abdullah Sport City Stadium ahead of the Club World Cup against Fluminense on Friday.

The Blues beat Urawa Red Diamonds 3-0 in Tuesday's semi-final but the playing surface was beginning to cut up during what was the fourth match played at this venue in eight days during this tournament.

Fluminense beat Al-Ahly 2-0 in the first semi-final on Monday but afterwards their coaching staff and players also raised concerns about the state of the pitch.

They also said the grass was shorter than at the training venues and that the ball wasn't rolling as they were used to. ALSO READ: City player ratings vs Urawa Red Diamonds as Nunes very good ALSO READ: Guardiola tactical change put City on course for their own world title But the pitch is also showing visible signs of wear and the 62,200-capacity stadium does play host to Saudi sides Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad and the Saudi Arabia national team.

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