Ian Wright fumes over ‘disgrace’ of a pitch as Arsenal lose to Real Madrid

A sodden surface made for a poor spectacle as the hosts secured a 2-0 first-leg advantage in the Women’s Champions League quarter-final

Arsenal were beaten 2-0 by Real Madrid (Getty Images)

The standard of the surface for a marquee women’s football fixture is under scrutiny for a second time in a matter of days, with Ian Wright branding the pitch for Arsenal’s Women’s Champions League defeat as a “disgrace”.

The visitors conceded a 2-0 first-leg deficit as Real Madrid made a strong start to their quarter-final ahead of the second half of the tie at the Emirates Stadium next week.

Linda Caicedo and Athenea struck for the hosts at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, but both sides struggled mightily to find their flow on a sodden surface not aiding fluent football.

(Getty Images)

Passing moves were relatively few and far between as heavy rain continued to fall in the Spanish capital, undermining what threatened to become a highly engaging encounter.

The pitch at Derby’s Pride Park had been heavily criticised after Chelsea beat Manchester City in Saturday’s League Cup final, but former Arsenal striker Wright believed the conditions to be even worse in Madrid.

“Watching the Champions League quarter-final Real Madrid pitch, this is worse than Derby's pitch the other day,” Wright said on social media. “This is a f****** disgrace the pitches these girls have to play on."

Arsenal boss Renee Slegers admitted the conditions played their part during her side’s defeat but did not want to comments on whether the tie should have been played at Real’s main Bernabeu stadium for the quarter-final.

"It's not on me to criticise, that's obviously a club decision,” Slegers said. "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.

Renee Slegers said improving the pitches is the ‘next step’ for women’s football to take (Getty Images)

"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."

Melanie Leupolz appeared to suffer an injury (AFP via Getty Images)

Real Madrid’s win could have come at a cost with midfielder Melanie Leupolz appearing to suffer a knee injury. The Germany international screamed in pain after playing a long pass and immediately clutched at her right leg.

Though able to hobble off and down the tunnel, the incident raised fears that Leupolz could face a spell on the sidelines with Euro 2025 looming.

The second leg of the tie will be held at the Emirates next Wednesday as the pair vie for a place in the semi-finals.