Beth Mead says the state Real Madrid’s pitch for the Champions League quarter-final win over Arsenal was “not good enough” for women’s football – and shows how far the game still has to go.
Real Madrid beat Arsenal 2-0 in Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg but the fallout from the match has focused on the poor playing conditions.
Gunners boss Renee Slegers said the pitch played a part in the defeat, while Real midfielder Melanie Leupolz came off injured with what looked like a serious knee injury after slipping off the ball.
The state of the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium pitch drew criticism from Arsenal legend Ian Wright, who branded it a disgrace, while the Players Football Association (PFA) said it endangered the safety of the players.
The state of the pitch led to widespread criticism
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had to play on a pitch that’s felt like that in my career,” Mead said to Sky Sports News on Thursday from Arsenal’s club shop.
“It’s disappointing for a quarter-final of a Champions League. It’s a pitch that both us and Real Madrid had to play in and it’s not just the state of the pitch, it’s for the safety of the players. And it was not ideal. Melanie Leupolz went down injured off the ball because she slipped on the pitch.”
Just days earlier there was criticism of Derby County’s Pride Park pitch, which hosted Chelsea’s Continental Cup final win over Manchester City last weekend.
Melanie Leupolz of Real Madrid lies injured
“It’s the same for the Conti Cup Final – it’s not good enough for what we want to showcase in the women’s game,” added Mead. “Hopefully it’s something that is rectified soon.
“The women’s game is in such a good place, but ultimately we’ve still got a long way to go. These are the barriers we are having to face.
“When you look at a quarter-final of a Champions League in the men’s game, you wouldn’t be seeing those conditions. So why would you be seeing them in the women’s game, when they’re doing exactly the same thing?”
Arsenal will welcome Real next week for the second leg at the Emirates Stadium, the same venue where the men’s team play all their home matches.
“They coped with the demands of the pitch better than what we did at the time,” said Mead. “That’s obviously a disappointment from our side but we have the second leg ,so we’ve got to put a performance here at the Emirates.
“We’re confident as a team, we know we’re good enough. Now we have to be ruthless in front of goal, it’s what we have to do in the leg now we’re two goals behind. We have to be scoring goals to get back into the game.”
How football reacted to Real Madrid’s pitch
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Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright and The Athletic’s David Ornstein slammed the state of Real Madrid’s pitch during the Women’s Champions League quarter-final fixture against Arsenal.
Taking to Instagram Live in the first half of Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final, former Arsenal men’s striker Ian Wright said: “This is worse than Derby’s pitch the other day.
“This is a ******* disgrace the pitches these girls have to play on.”
And on Wednesday evening, the Professional Footballers Association [PFA] joined the criticism of the pitch conditions.
A spokesperson told Sky Sports News: “Pitches like this don’t just impact the quality of the game, they put player safety at risk.
“On multiple occasions over the past few days, in important ties, our members have been asked to play in sub-standard conditions. World-class players deserve world-class standards, and they are right to expect better.”
Real Madrid did not use their main Santiago Bernabeu Stadium for the game against Arsenal
Asked about the call not to use the stadium, Arsenal boss Slegers said: “It’s not on me to criticise. That’s obviously a club decision and I’m sure that UEFA is trying to create the best conditions for the tournament.
“Of course weather is not within control, but I think we’ve seen a couple of games lately where the pitch conditions haven’t been great and I think that’s the next step for women’s football to take.
“We spoke about it with the players before the game. We knew the condition of the pitch. So we had a plan for it but then it’s always hard, because over a season and over time you work on things, and you have an identity, the way you want to do things.
“So then reality comes and these conditions come and all of a sudden you need to do things differently, so that’s hard. But the players tried, so all credit to them for trying and their work rate.
“But again, I think we’re all confident that we can do something against them at the Emirates at home because it’s only half time.”
Sky Sports News reporter Anton Toloui posted on X after the game to criticise the decision to let the game at the Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium go ahead.
“This pitch is barely enough for Sunday league never mind a Champions League quarter-final,” he wrote.
“Thinking it’s OK sends the following message: we don’t care about player safety, we don’t care about the quality of the game… actually, we just don’t care.”
