France midfielder Adrien Rabiot said the pitch at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford felt more like an artificial surface, quite hard and quite rigid. Brazil forward Vinicius Jr. expressed frustration with the dryness of the pitch at the New York/New Jersey stadium. France manager Didier Deschamps called the pitch a 'special surface.' According to geosuper.tv, Deschamps said he thinks there is probably concrete underneath the pitch and that it has very short fibres. He also said the pitch’s behaviour had changed from last year's FIFA Club World Cup, which was also played at the same stadium, and that the bounce of the pitch is a bit different compared to that event. Kylian Mbappé scored for France in a win over Senegal, and Rabiot registered an assist in the match. According to theheraldtoday.com, Paul Pogba joined Vinicius Jr. in criticizing the pitch after Brazil’s 1-1 draw against Morocco, and Pogba highlighted the impact of poor field conditions on player safety and overall game performance.