Pep Guardiola has directed blame away from his Manchester City side following their failure to beat Crystal Palace, by finding fault with the playing surface as an excuse.
City stumbled to a 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park to leave them just four points clear of title rivals Liverpool but having played a game extra.
Despite dominating large periods of the game City were unable to find a way past Eagles keeper Vicente Guaita, with Guardiola insisting the imperfect grass played a role in denying the champions all three points.