France’s Rabiot joins Vinicius in criticising New York pitch

France midfielder Adrien Rabiot has also criticised the pitch at the New York/New Jersey stadium after beating Senegal 3-1 on Tuesday, echoing Brazil forward Vinicius Jr's frustration with the dryness of the surface.

Kylian Mbappe scored a brace as France kicked off their FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign in style in East Rutherford.

Rabiot, who registered an assist in France's Group I opener, said the stadium, which will host the World Cup final in July, felt less like a real pitch and more like an artificial surface.

"The pitch... I don't even know if you can call it that. It felt more like an artificial surface — quite hard and quite rigid," Rabiot told reporters.

Meanwhile, France manager Didier Deschamps termed the pitch a "special surface" when questioned about it in a press conference.

"I think there's probably concrete underneath, it's very short fibres," Deschamps said.

The pitch’s behaviour had changed from last year's FIFA Club World Cup, also played at the New York/New Jersey stadium, Deschamps added. "The bounce is a bit different," he said, adding that his side are adjusting to the conditions.

Brazil's Vinicius sparked the debate about the dryness of the pitch after his side’s 1-1 draw with Morocco in the first match played at the stadium on Saturday.

"In the second half, with the heat, the pitch dries out very quickly. The game becomes very sluggish and we can't get into our rhythm," Vinicius had said.

The next game will be played between Senegal and Norway at the venue on June 22.