Persik Kediri head coach Marcos Reina criticized the quality of the grass at the Jakarta International Stadium, after his team suffered a 1-2 defeat to hosts Persija Jakarta at the stadium in the seventh week of the 2026/27 BRI Super League.
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In that match, Persik as the visiting team took the lead first through Imanol Garcia's goal in the 10th minute, before they had to lose to Persija who were able to come back thanks to goals from Denis Kolinger in the 64th minute and Rizky Ridho in the 66th minute.
"I'm very proud of the team and the players. They fought like lions in this stadium, which is an extraordinary and classy stadium. However, the condition of the grass was very bad," Reina said.
According to Reina, the condition of the grass at JIS prevented both teams from playing at their best. This also contributed to all three goals in the match coming from set pieces.
Reina said that the White Tigers' trademark style of play, such as short passes and dominance, was not visible in this match due to the poor quality of the grass at JIS.
He also said that this situation caused his team to change the way they played, by playing more simply to score goals and at least get a point.
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