PHILIPPINES coach Albert Capellas calls for more football fields made with natural grass after the national squad played its AFC Asian Cup 2027 qualifiers at the New Clark City Athletics Stadium in Capas, Tarlac.
The Nationals played their first-ever match at New Clark City with the Rizal Memorial Stadium still unavailable due to the ongoing renovations of its artificial turf.
PMNT defeated Maldives, 4-1, on Tuesday night to begin the third round of play in front of 3,334 fans, some of which made the trip from Manila to watch the squad.
READ: PMNT opens third round of Asian Cup qualis with rout of Maldives
Capellas said playing on natural grass fields will augment to the development of football in the country.
“If we want to develop football in the Philippines, we need to increase the level of natural grasses, more fields with high level of natural grasses,” said Capellas after the match.
Capellas also said it will also benefit the players when playing on a natural surface since it reduces the risk of getting injuries during their duties with the national team and away from their mother clubs.
“All the players prefer to play in natural grass because there is the risk of injuries [playing on artificial turf] and that is also very important because they come from their clubs,” said Capellas.
The Philippines’ next match in the Asian Cup qualifiers will be on June 10, a home match although the venue is still to be determined.
Capellas said the natural grass also improves the quality of play, which showed in the Philippines’ match against Maldives.
“The ball rolls faster, it’s easier to move the ball to find the spaces, and when the field is big and in very good condition, everybody wins – the players, the federation, and, in the end, the fans because they see better show, better entertainment, and everything that we do is for the fans,” said Capellas.
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