Barça complies with the sporting regulations: "There is no harm to the opponent."
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The Johan Cruyff Stadium has the same pitch dimensions as the First Division pitches.
The Barça-Valencia matchday 4 LaLiga match has a definitive venue. It won't be the Spotify Camp Nou, which is still pending municipal permission to open after completing Phase 1A of the works. Instead, it will be the Johan Cruyff Stadium, which will debut as a First Division home with a capacity of just 6,000, with the exception of LaLiga due to force majeure.
https://arquitectura-sostenible.es/estadio-johan-cruyff-ejemplo-sostenibilidad-recinto-deportivo/
The change of stadium, necessitated by the renovation deadlines and the impossibility of using Montjuïc due to Post Malone's concert on September 12, had raised doubts about whether the teams would be disadvantaged by playing the match in a smaller venue. The uncertainty centered on the dimensions of the pitch, but those doubts have since been dispelled: the Johan Cruyff Stadium is exactly the same size as the Camp Nou, 105 meters long by 68 meters wide, measurements approved by UEFA and common in large European and First Division stadiums.
In fact, Corberán himself, before the match, avoided the controversy over the chosen pitch: "I don't listen much to what people are saying. The pitch has the same dimensions as the grass, so the opposite is wrong. Lamine, Ferran, Raphinha, and Pedri are far superior to the dimensions of the stands," he added.
Thus, beyond the atmosphere, the capacity, and the media impact of converting a magnum opus like the new Spotify Camp Nou into a training stadium, the strictly sporting aspect remains unchanged. Valencia will find a field identical in size to the one it would have had at Les Corts. "There is no disadvantage for the opponent," say club sources, who emphasize that the field has been adapted to meet all LaLiga standards, including the installation of a VAR and fiber optic connectivity.
The Johan Cruyff Stadium, inaugurated in 2019 as the jewel of the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper, is designed precisely with that in mind: to be an elite stadium, albeit on a reduced scale in terms of capacity, allowing the reserve and women's teams to compete under professional conditions and in international competitions such as the Women's Champions League or the Youth League. Its 6,000-seat capacity is little compared to the 99,000 at the old Camp Nou or even the 27,000 planned for this first phase of the renovation, but its pitch meets the highest standards.
For the Barça players, it will be a temporary return to a venue where some have already played twice (Gamper vs. Juventus in 2021 and this season against Como), with the certainty that in terms of sporting performance there are no differences beyond the lesser warmth of the crowd.
Beyond the stadium, all eyes will be on how Flick's team responds after the international break and the draw in Vallecas, knowing that the lead at the start of the season, pending Madrid's performance against Real Sociedad, cannot afford any further slip-ups.
See You soon!
Posted Using INLEO