Maastricht football stadium's artificial turf pitch has been rejected. The club confirmed this to RTV Maastricht today. As a result, the club will probably not be able to play the first 2 home matches on home turf in Stadion de Geusselt.

Discussions are ongoing with the Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbalbond – KNVB (royal Dutch football association) whether the duels will be finished in another stadium, or can be played later midweek in de Geusselt. Construction will take 4 to 6 weeks.

Requirements
The playing surface no longer meets the requirements set by world football federation FIFA. The ball does not roll as it should, meeting too little resistance rolling further than allowed by the standards.

Certificate
At the annual inspection prior to the competition, an approved pitch receives a certificate. If a club does not have this certificate, no league matches can be played on it.

Guarantee
MVV Maastricht has agreed with owner of the stadium, Gemeente Maastricht, and the supplier that the pitch will be replaced as soon as possible. The Gemeente assumes there is still a guarantee on the playing surface as it was issued for 5 years of use. The pitch is 3 years old and was voted the best artificial turf pitch in professional football 2 years ago.

Read the original article in Dutch