It’s Bumpy

Due to the condition of the field at the Shanghai Hongkou Football Stadium, the U.S. team (like all the countries that have played there) were not allowed a pre-game practice on the game pitch. Shanghai was just hit with too much rain at the wrong times and the field endured four matches in five days. As a result, it’s just not in very good shape. It’s bumpy, choppy and sandy, so much so that after the final two Group B matches on Tuesday, Women’s World Cup organizers will replace the entire playing surface in preparation for the 3rd Place Match and Final on Sept. 30. But hey, both teams have to play on it and hopefully with another’s day of work, it will be in more playable shape for the USA-Nigeria game.