Pep Guardiola slams organisers of ICC over 'unacceptable pitch'

Pep Guardiola has blasted organisers of the International Champions Cup for the “unacceptable” pitch that saw the cancellation of the Manchester derby in Beijing.

City and United were due to meet on July 25 at the Bird's Nest stadium in the first Manchester derby to be played outside of the UK.

But the game was called off five hours before kick-off , leaving around 50,000 fans disappointed, as well as millions from the expected worldwide TV audience.

The pitch was deemed unplayable by both clubs, after heavy rain exacerbated an existing fungal problem, which left had huge areas of the playing surface needing to be relaid. 

City boss Guardiola, speaking ahead of his side's game against Borussia Dortmund tomorrow, did not hold back on his criticism of the tournament organisers, saying:

“The pitch was unacceptable

“We don't travel all the way to China just for holidays or a training session.

“We came to play two friendly games so I think it was the first time a game has been cancelled here.

“They are looking for hotels, inviting players, but at the end, if the pitch is not good enough, all that doesn't matter.

“For them, the pitch doesn't matter, but for us it's the most important thing.

“All the players and the coaches want to play as well as they can.

“Maybe there was a concert on the pitch 10 or 15 days before. Our groundsman was there for 10 days to try to take care of the pitch.

“It wasn't the water, it wasn't the rain. It was just the state of the pitch.

“We have played in really bad conditions in our careers, but that pitch two days ago was impossible to play on.

“It wasn't just about avoiding injured for the players, it was about the fans. They buy tickets to watch players of quality from City and United.

“But if we had played on that pitch, the fans would have said 'what is that game?' because it was unacceptable.

“The pitch [turf] would have moved two metres. Believe me, it was the right decision not to play on it.”

Guardiola added: "Maybe it was a lesson for the people who organise it."