A few hours from a long-awaited semi-final against Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid addresses this shock in a climate of tension and unexpected. This meeting at the top, scheduled for the New York Metlife Stadium, crystallizes the attention of football enthusiasts around the world, opposing two European giants as part of the Club World Cup, a new formula. But beyond the poster, the whole competition is debated. Since its launch, this edition has aroused criticism and questions, both on its overloaded calendar and on the logistical conditions imposed on the teams committed.
Indeed, many recurring problems tarnish the smooth running of the tournament: complicated trips, tight deadlines, unpredictable climatic conditions, and an organization pointed out for its lack of flexibility. Real Madrid has paid the price in recent hours, with a series of adventures that has heavily impacted its preparation. This new incident is added to a growing list of criticism, strengthening the idea that this extended version of the Club World Cup is struggling to convince sporting as an organizational level.
Problems on the plane!
Real Madrid has experienced serious setbacks because of a violent storm at Palm Beach, seriously disturbing its preparation for the semi-final against PSG. While the team had already managed to avoid suspensions linked to the weather in its previous match against Juventus, this time, bad weather completely upset its agenda. The flight supposed to take players to New York was temporarily blocked at West Palm Beach International Airport, pending take -off authorization. This delay prevented the club from participating in the official fifa commitments, in particular press conferences and contacts with the media planned at the Metlife Stadium, the place of upcoming meeting. Faced with the impossibility of respecting the program, Real Madrid had to warn FIFA and cancel all these meetings.
Finally, the white plane was able to take off with an hour late, but the complications continued on arrival. Due to significant air traffic, the device was forced to fly over Virginia for an additional hour before being able to land at Laguardia airport. This setback led to the final cancellation of the press conference of coach Xabi Alonso and three players: Valverde, Courtois and Jacobo. Unlike PSG, which was able to train without incident in the installations of Rutgers University in the north of New Jersey, Real Madrid had chosen to stay in Palm Beach to prepare its semi-final, a decision that turned into a real logistic nightmare. The club will not reproduce this error: in the event of qualification for the final on Sunday, also planned in New York, the team will not return to Florida and will remain in NY until the end of the tournament.
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