On this week’s podcast we spotlight the sides that have been newly promoted to La Liga. We also look at some of the footballing stories from last week and try to predict some of the big games this week in our predictions battle. Remember you can also:

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On this week’s podcast we take a look into the crystal ball and try and predict how Damon’s Liverpool and Damian’s Tottenham will finish this season. Remember you can also:

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Each week, languagecaster’s podcast will have four sections.

1. The good, the bad and the ugly – a review of the footballing news
2. A main report - an interview, spotlight, fans’ opinions etc. There is also a separate post with transcript and vocabulary support
3. An English for Football phrase – we explain a word from that week’s news, or a phrase that is important if you want to talk about football
4. Predictions – a look at 4 or 5 games
from around the world. Damon and Damian battle it out against each other and guests to guess the match results in a predictions competition

For teachers there is more information and ideas here.

Also, check out our -

• Football Language Resources page
• Football glossary (a huge collection of football vocabulary, football cliches and football phrases)
• Worksheets and teaching ideas from previous podcasts

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The World Cup is over, Spain are Champions, Forlan has the Golden Ball, Thomas Mueller has been awarded the Golden Boot and Damian and Damon take a look back at the highs and lows of the tournament in the final languagecaster.com World Cup podcast. You can also:

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The World Cup final takes place this weekend and we cast our eyes over the two teams and give our predictions. Vocabulary, in bold from the transcript of this report can be found below. You can also:

Transcript

Game 64 of the World Cup, has Holland taking on the Spanish to decide the winners of the 19th World Cup tournament. Neither of these two sides have previously won the trophy before and despite having great players in their team, good form coming into the competition and strong footballing traditions, few pundits had tipped them to reach the final. That is except those here at languagecaster – Damon predicted a Holland victory while I went for Spain.

I still think it will be Spain for despite a slow start – remember their first game defeat against Switzerland? – they have been improving ever since. If they were to win the World Cup, it would mean they would be the first ever team to lose their opening match and still go on to win the competition. Though they have been criticised for not scoring goals – only 7 so far in the tournament – they have won most of their games comfortably. David Villa has been receiving many of the plaudits for his performances and goals but the midfield have been immense, constantly probing for openings, setting up scoring chances and maintaining a solid shape throughout. Xavi and Iniesta have been wonderful while Xavi Alonso has also been very consistent. Doubts about their defence have been answered with only 2 goals conceded in the whole competition, while we also have to praise the fact that Spain have only had 3 yellow cards and are one of the teams that have given away the least amount of fouls in the whole of the World Cup. They never panic, their footballing technique is second to none and their performance in the semi-final was amazing as they destroyed a very strong German side to win through. Holland are organised and have great players throughout their side but I am going for a dominant 1-0 win for Spain.

Damon

Well, we’re here it’s the final, fantastic, Holland against Spain, of course, I tipped Holland to win the whole thing right at the beginning of the World Cup – go on, look it up, check it out at languagecaster.com. I had it there in black and white. And do I think they’re going to go the whole way? Well, it’s certainly interesting both these teams have got to the final without really blowing away anybody, without really impressing people. Spain are the favourites of course but I’ve got to say, I find their style of play a little bit sterile, of course, it’s beautiful, yes, wonderful and they pass it so well and they don’t give the ball back and isn’t that wonderful but … where’s the passion, where’s the … I don’t know, where’s the action? Where’s the drama? In Spain, I just don’t get that. My heart is with Holland and I’d really love them to win so I’m going to go for them, what the hell, I’m going to lose the predictions battle, anyway. I think they’re going to win 2-1, it’s going to be a great game because both these teams set up quite defensively, if you look at it. You’ve got Van bommell and De Jong for Holland sitting in front of their defenders and you’ve got Busquets and Alonso for Spain doing the same thing. You’ve got some great play makers on both sides, obviously Iniesta for Spain and you’ve got Sneijder for Holland and Robben … adding a little bit of spice and Villa who’s deadly and he may get the Golden Boot here who knows? So, it’s all to play for, I really hope it’s going to be a good game and to be a good game I think Holland have to score first, ‘cos if Spain do, well, we might as well put the mood music on and the volume down on the TV and just watch the pretty patterns

Vocabulary

taking on: To face, to play against

pundits: Expert football commentators

receiving many of the plaudits: The player has received much adulation, many people like one player because of his strong performances

probing : Searching

2 goals conceded: 2 goals have been let in; 2 goals have been scored against them

is second to none: No one is better

dominant: Convincing

blowing away anybody: Neither team has dominated another team

sterile: No imagination or flair

set up: Play, how the teams are organised

deadly: A very dangerous striker

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The World Cup quarter-finals take place this weekend and we have some mouth-watering ties to look forward to. In today’s podcast Damon and Damian cast their eyes over the four match ups. Vocabulary, in bold from the transcript of this report can be found below. You can also:

Transcript

Holland-Brazil

Everyone’s favourites for the title – at least on our site’s poll – Brazil take on Holland in the first of the World Cup quarter-finals. Indeed, so much are they favourites that the Dutch are being described as ‘Brazil light’. These two sides have a history – though not as contentious as the Germany-Argentina game – going back to 1974 when the then reigning champions Brazil were torn apart by a rampaging Dutch side that included Johann Cruyff. In 1994 they met again and this time the Brazilians won 3-2 despite a wonderful comeback from the Dutch. With current manager Dunga as their captain, Brazil went on to lift the trophy on penalties that year, which is how they defeated the Dutch in the 1998 semi-finals in France. The games have always been of a high quality and no one is expecting anything less of today’s match.

Both teams are in very good form with the Dutch on a national record run of 23 games unbeaten but it is generally felt that Brazil have better discipline, organisation and more match winners in their team than Holland. True, the Dutch have Sneijder, Van Persie and Robben but Brazilian fans point to Robinho, Fabiano, Maicon and Kaka. Despite these top players, however, I am going to go for Holland partly because I feel the pressure on Brazil – and particularly Dunga – is simply too heavy for them to bear. I also feel that the Dutch have one good game in them and this could be the one, while Robben looks very impressive and I feel if he or one of his team mates scores first then it will be very interesting to see how Brazil cope. 2-1 to Holland.

Ghana – Uruguay

How fitting that Uruguay are doing so well this time round in a World Cup held on African soil. They were the first national team in South America to… field a player of African descent, years before their more famous neighbours Brazil. But what a shame that they are up against an African side in Ghana, and one of these teams will be going home come Sunday. Ghana of course, are hoping to be the first African side to reach the semi finals in a World Cup, and Uruguay, although past World Cup winners, haven’t tasted success in this competition since 1970 when they got to the semis.

I expect this match to be quite defensive, a little like Japan v Paraguay, as both teams have so much to gain from a win, and will feel so disappointed with a loss. On balance, Uruguay have looked the stronger of the two teams so far and seem to be able to score when they need to with Forlan and Suarez up front. On the other hand, Ghana have looked resilient, strong and intelligent with the ball, but lack a clinical finish.

A tight 1–1 draw with Uruguay going through on penalties.

Germany – Argentina

Germany v Argentina. Two heavyweights in the world of World Cups. Germany have three trophies to Argentina’s two, and this match has two teams with pedigree clashing in the quarter finals. Added to the history we’ve got the Europe vs South America angle. This year, four of the eight quarter finalists are from South America, and perhaps Europe will have to wait to win a World Cup outside of European soil. History and geography are interesting enough, but throw in a bit of bad blood and things get even more interesting.

The two have met five times in  World Cups, with two of those meetings being in finals – Argentina winning in 1986 and Germany getting revenge four years later. However, most of the rivalry stems from the last World Cup in Germany in 2006. Germany defeated Argentina on penalties after the game ended 1-1 – after the game, but still on the pitch, a mass brawl erupted with both sides laying into one another. The memory of that has resurfaced in the build up to this game. Germany’s Sweinstagger has criticised the Argentinian fans and their team’s style of play. Maradona has responded by promising his players will be ‘in the faces’ of their opponents.

It should be an interesting game. As an England fan, with bad memories of both these teams, it’s difficult for me to choose a winner – can’t they both lose? But if push comes to shove – 2-1 to Argentina.

Spain – Paraguay

This one seems to be fairly clear-cut with the 2008 European Champions taking on a side that has only managed 3 goals so far in the tournament, which is a little unfair as Spain have only got 5 themselves. Spain are the favourites but South American sides have been pulling off surprises throughout the competition and Paraguay are nothing if not organised. Their manager, Martino, feels that his side’s discipline can see them through but anyone who watched their second round match against Japan will wonder where they will find goal-scoring opportunities. Paraguay on the other hand know very well about Spain’s goal-scoring threat – David Villa has scored 4 times already and is on fire at the moment, with Iniesta and Xavi hitting form at the right time this looks a very confident and fluid Spanish side that should be able to win through – 1-0 for me.

Vocabulary

take on: To play against, to face

contentious: Controversial – some bad feeling between the two sides

reigning champions : Brazil had won the title in 1970, so they were the then champions, the holders

were torn apart : Completely thrashed, well beaten

rampaging: Here it means that a team were non-stop in their attacking play

to go for: To choose, to predict

to bear: To carry

field a player: play  someone, choose someone to play in the team, put someone on the pitch

(to) taste success: to have experience of winning, to be successful

resilient: strong, not easily overcome, can recover from setbacks

heavyweight; a powerhouse, a traditionally strong team, a team with history

European soil: in Europe

(to) stem: to have roots in, to start in/from

(to) lay into: to punch, to fight with, to attack violently

if push comes to shove: if you are forced to give an opinion, if you have to make a choice

clear-cut: Very clear, obvious

is on fire: Villa is playing very well at the moment

fluid: Playing in a fast, passing style

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The second round of the World Cup is now over and what an amazing four days it has been. On today’s podcast we take a look back at those 8 games, which had a little bit of everything from penalty shootouts to disputed goals, red cards and some wonder strikes. Vocabulary in bold is explained in the transcript below.

Transcript

The second round of the World Cup is now over and what an amazing four days it has been. On today’s podcast we take a look back at those 8 games, which had a little bit of everything from penalty shootouts to disputed goals, red cards, wonder strikes, as well as lots of tears of joy and sadness.

Uruguay 2- 1 South Korea

In a rain-drenched Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Uruguay beat South Korea 2-1 thanks to two well-taken goals by top striker Luis Suarez, his second in particular a real beauty which means Uruguay continue their successful run and sees them reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup for the first time since 1970. The Koreans had their chances but failed to find a way past the impressive Uruguayan defence – one that had not conceded a goal in this tournament – until Lee Chung-Yong’s equaliser half way through the second half. The Asian side pressed for a winner but it was Suarez who sealed the victory with a delightful curling shot in the 80th minute.

Ghana 2- 1 (aet) USA

A real topsy-turvy game saw Ghana make it to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history and to become only the third side from Africa to make it that far. The Black Stars deserved it for their extra-time performance when they took the game to the States who had seemed favourites to win after their strong second-half showing had earned them an equaliser from their captain Landon Donovan. This goal had cancelled out Boateng’s early strike for Ghana but rather than going on to win the game, it was the Africans who finished stronger with their top scorer Asamoah Gyan getting the winner in extra time.

Germany 4-1 England

Without a doubt Germany deserved this victory but to tell the truth they didn’t really have to work that hard for it. Seeing England have a perfectly good goal ruled out was one piece of extremely good luck but England’s inability to maintain possession, their tactical naivity and poor performances from top players meant that it was a relatively easy victory for the young German side. Klose out-muscled the defence for the first, Podolski rammed home the second while Thomas Mueller scored two goals on the counter-attack early in the second half to record England’s biggest ever World Cup defeat. Upson scored what proved to be a consolation goal while Lampard was unfortunate in having his goal chalked off when everyone else watching knew that it was in. A thrashing.

Argentina 3-1 Mexico

Diego Maradona’s side keep rolling on and they fully deserved this victory over a Mexican side who yet again were let down by poor finishing after some good build-up play. However, they can also point to bad refereeing decisions as it was clear to everyone that Carlos Tevez’ opening goal was well offside. Nothing wrong with Tevez’ second and his side’s third when he slammed home a rocket from outside the box. Hernandez scored a late consolation for Mexico but yet again they have fallen at the second round to their southern neighbours. A mouth-watering tie lies ahead between Argentina and Germany in a repeat of the quarter-final of 4 years ago.

Holland 2-1 Slovakia

Many felt that the Slovaks had peaked in their amazing victory over Italy in the final group match and so it proved to be as the Dutch ran out comfortable winners. Arjen Robben’s return from injury has given the Dutch a huge lift and he scored his second goal of the tournament midway through the first half before Wesley Sneijder sealed the victory late in the second. The Slovaks did get a late consolation goal when Vittek netted his fourth goal of the tournament but it proved too late and the Dutch side maintained their 100% record to qualify for the last 8.

Brazil 3-0 Chile

Chile had been many people’s dark horses and had won many friends with their high-paced attacking style of play but they were unable to reproduce it against their South American neighbours who dominated from the word go. Strong in defence and brilliant on the counter attack the Brazilians were formidable and goals from Juan, Luis Fabiano – his third of the tournament, and a resurgent Robinho ensured another victory over Chile. Dunga is still under pressure of course, nothing short of winning a sixth trophy is what the fans want from him and the Selecao but on this form there are few who would bet against him doing it.

Paraguay 0-0 Japan (Paraguay 5-3 on pens)

Neither side had ever reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup before and on this performance it is easy to see why. Easily one of the worst games of this tournament it seemed that neither side was capable of keeping the ball for more than one or two touches, with Japan in particular showing little in attack. Their defender Komano missed his penalty in the shoot out while Paraguay scored all of theirs to send the South Americans through and the Japanese to return home with regret because they will never get a better chance of making the last 8.

Spain 1-0 Portugal

Another team returning home with regret is Portugal after they succumbed to their Iberian neighbours and European Champions Spain 1-0 last night. The Portuguese simply wished to shut-up-shop against the Spanish and when they went behind midway through the second half they could find no way back into the game. Their captain and star striker Ronaldo barely got a kick in the second half and had to watch on in admiration as Spain’s David Villa yet again showed that he is one of the best strikers in the world with his 4th goal of the tournament. Spain move on.

Vocabulary

rain-drenched: It had been raining heavily all day; full of rain
a real beauty : A beautiful goal
conceded a goal: Not allowed a goal to go in against them; had maintained 3 clean sheets up until then
equaliser: A goal to tie the game, e.g. 1-1
aet: After Extra Time
topsy-turvy: A game that is difficult to predict as it is constantly changing; one minute the Americans were on top then the Ghanaians
Black Stars Nickname of the Ghana football team
cancelled out: Another verb to describe an equaliser
strike: Here it means a goal
goal ruled out: A disallowed goal, it was not a goal
tactical naivity: The england team did not understand tactics very well
out-muscled: He was stronger than the England player
rammed home: He smashed home the goal, he scored with a very strong shot
counter-attack : An attack that starts from the defence and is very speedy
chalked off: Disallowed goal, ruled out
build-up play: The team passed the ball well before scoring
slammed home a rocket : He scored a great goal (with a lot of power)
box: The penalty area
A mouth-watering tie: A game that everyone is looking forward to
had peaked: Had played their best, cannot play any better
ran out comfortable winners: Easily won
sealed the victory: Completed the victory
netted his fourth goal : Scored his 4th goal
high-paced: Play in a quick manner
formidable : Very good and very strong
the Selecao: Nickname for the Brazilian football team
the shoot out: The penalty shoot-out at the end of extra time to decide the winner
succumbed to: Lost to
their Iberian neighbours: Spain
to shut-up-shop : Very defensive
barely got a kick : Hardly kicked the ball, was not involved in the game

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On today’s show, languagecaster.com dissects France’s miserable performance at the World Cup. We also salute the four teams that have qualified for the knockout stages from Groups C and D and look ahead at today’s games. We also have our regular items on the show including:

Transcript

With their 1-2 defeat against South Africa leaving them bottom of Group A the French World Cup dream – or should that be nightmare – is over. Unable to break down a strong Uruguayan defence, overrun by a speedy Mexican attack and outplayed for much of the game by hosts South Africa les bleus scored only one goal and managed to secure just one point. When fancied teams, like France, crash out of tournaments, there is usually an inquest as to why this may have occurred but with this team there is no such need as it was all so blatantly obvious.

Before the tournament had even started the football world knew that trouble and tension existed between players and the rather eccentric coach Raymond Domenech. Many felt that by not bringing to the tournament young stars Sammi Nasri from Arsenal and Karim Benzema of Real Madrid nor the leadership qualities of World Cup winner Patrick Vieira then his team would suffer. His captain Thierry Henry was patently out of form so could not start any of the games leading to another argument, this time over who should hold the captaincy – Patrice Evra got the nod but Franck Ribery and William Gallas were not impressed. There were rumours of cliques in the camp with players not talking to each other while there was dissatisfaction from home about the 5-star lifestyle and with the poor attitude of the team in general. Then at half-time against Mexico striker Anelka launched a foul-mouthed tirade against Domenech for which he was dropped and sent home after refusing to apologise. Surely that would be it but the players then refused to train in response to this action or maybe due to the story being leaked. Backroom staff resigned, French federation staff resigned and the French public were resigned and disgusted with their team.

The coach Domenech called his players imbeciles after their dramatic walk out from training and then dropped some of the supposed ringleaders meaning that a weakened side faced South Africa. That game produced a red card, a defeat and a poor performance, which ensured the end for the coach but to top it all off he then refused to shake hands with his South African counterpart the Brazilian Perreira claiming that he had said that France should not have even been in the finals due to the infamous handball decision against Ireland in the qualifiers. You didn’t think I would fail to mention that incident did you? I would like to think I am above laughing at others’ misfortunes but in this case I will make an exception.

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The eyes of fans of teams in Groups C and D will be turned on today’s fixtures and in this show we focus on England v Slovenia and Germany v Ghana – A win for any of these teams will guarantee a play off spot so it’s all to play for. England have been trying to copy France in terms of dismal displays on the pitch and players speaking out about the coach – John Terry you naughty boy. As for Germany, they are a bit Jekyll and Hyde, winning plaudits for their opening win and causing disbelief by being beaten by Serbia. So all to play for, but what do fans think. We asked four fans their predictions, to describe England and Germany’s campaigns so far and for their highlights this week. Also:

Click here or the image to see the slideshow!

Or check out the audio report above.

I was lucky enough to be invited to a nihonshu (sake) tasting event combined with the Holland vs Japan game last weekend organised by Etsuko and Te-chan from tokyofoodcast. The event was held in downtown Tokyo and the bar was crammed full of a bout 30 sake enthusiasts and Japan football team fans who had come along to taste the FIFA endorsed sake from all corners of Japan. As the alcohol started flowing the game kicked off and the fans already predicted a confident 2-0 or 2-1 victory for Japan – maybe they believe in the power of positive thinking. After 45 minutes and about six different sakes the score remained a 0-0 stalemate, and on the whole, the fans were still confident: 1-0 or 0-0. Of course, we all know the result, a Kawashima error let Sneijder score from distance and Japan lost 1-0 and Holland have qualified. But credit to the Japan fans who continued to chant and support their team throughout and who will, confidently, expect their team to beat Denmark in the final group match.

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‘Maybe it’s the pressure?’ suggested England manager Fabio Cappello after England’s dismal draw with Algeria, so on this World Cup podcast we take a look at the pressure of playing in the most important sporting event in the world. We also have our regular items on the show including:

Transcript

Damon: Well, obviously bad for England, terrible in fact but worse for Rooney. He was out of the game completely and at the end of the match ranted at the England fans sarcastically saying ‘it’s nice to hear your fans booing’. It was a miracle that the booing hadn’t started earlier, England’s performance definitely deserved it and up until the end the England fans could be heard supporting their team above the din of the vuvuzela – at least they did their bit. Poor play and an even worse attitude from Wayne Rooney.

Damian: Well, that was Damon’s take on the Algeria – England scoreless draw, which left fans here in the UK scratching their heads and wondering why players such as Rooney, Gerrard and Lampard have not performed for the country like they do for their clubs. Manager Fabio Capello puts it all down to pressure – the inability to cope with it is causing the team to malfunction.

Surely, these well-paid players are used to it – they play in the Champions League and are under close scrutiny from the media throughout their regular domestic season and therein lies the crux of the matter. The World Cup is simply not a regular tournament. Fans who may not have watched any games during the year – or even know what football is – become experts over night fuelled by the media’s agenda. Suddenly everyone has an opinion and, thanks to the wall-to-wall coverage here, is also a master tactician. Rooney has since apologised for his outburst, something which French striker Nicolas Anelka refused to do to his manager, Raymond Domenech after a half-time tirade in the defeat against Mexico. The French Sports minister, Roselyne Bachelot reckoned that, “The very high pressure weighing on Les Bleus does not authorise any form of slip-up.’ A bit late for that then as the rest of the French team will be following Anelka home very shortly. Another team going home early is Cameroon, many people’s tips as the dark horses of the tournament but with reports of in-fighting among players and huge pressure on manager Paul Le Guen the Indomitable Lions have been well beaten and are out of the competition.

Other teams that will have to face up to huge pressure over the next few days are Spain who lost their first game to Switzerland, Germany who unthinkably face elimination after losing and missing a penalty against Serbia and Brazil manager Dunga who is not only expected to win the World Cup but to do so in style. Now, that’s pressure.

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The World Cup is a week old and languagecaster looks at some of the highs and lows of the tournament by asking some football fans in Tokyo what they think of the World Cup so far. Remember you can also:

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In this podcast, Damian reflects on the media reaction to England’s first game against the United States, we review some of the main talking point of the past few days and also look forward to some great games in our predictions. Remember you can also:

Transcript

After all the build up and the hype, England yet again fail to convince in the World Cup, this time in their 1-1 draw with the USA. However, they can count themselves a little unlucky on two fronts. First of all, it’s difficult to legislate for the goalkeeping howler that Robert Green made (unless of course you feel he shouldn’t have been picked in the first place) and secondly the fact that England played on a Saturday evening meant that the all-powerful Sunday newspapers were ready to savage them the next day. And savage them they did. Stars and Tripe (rubbish) proclaimed the News of the World, the biggest-selling Sunday tabloid, the Guardian also blamed the keeper though in a much less aggressive manner ‘Green slips and England stagger‘, while the Sunday Times questioned the role of the previously untouchable Fabio Capello (As Capello fiddles, so a nation’s hopes burn). Slightly over the top? Yes, of course but that’s the job of the Sunday press.

But really how bad was it? Yes, the team looked shaky at the back, they have an injury crisis and that it is obvious that Gerrard and Lampard cannot play together but it is a point against the team that is favoured to go through with England to the next round and without dominating they definitely created more chances than their frankly limited opponents. America will not be anywhere near the business end of the tournament but England may well be. The other two members of the group are appalling so there should be no problems in qualifying for the next round while World Cup winning teams traditionally start slowly. If you need another omen all you long-suffering England fans here is another one. The USA opened their World Cup account in Germany 4 years ago against a team that was lambasted by the press for an insipid opening display. That team was Italy and they went all the way.

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The World Cup is finally here and languagecaster kicks off its World Cup coverage with a look at the teams we think will do well and not so well. We also discuss those teams we think may cause a surprise or two and predict which players will feature in the Golden Boot race. Remember you can also:

On this, the final podcast of the year, we take a look back at some of the highs and lows of the European football season. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we review the football season in Europe. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below. Explanations of vocabulary in bold appears at the foot of the post. You can also post a comment telling us what you thought were the best and worst moments of the season.

Review of the 2009-10 Season

It has been the season of the double, the treble and the bubble, that is English football’s hegemony, finally being burst. For the first time in 7 years no English side competed in the Champions League final, many of the Premier League’s teams are all massively in the red, while one of its members, Portsmouth, went into administration due to its inability to pay off its debts. But this financial downturn is not restricted to England with Spain’s La Liga clubs also massively in debt – more than a billion Euros worth of debt in fact. Way back at the start of this season in August we asked whether La Liga had become more powerful than the Premier League but maybe we should have looked elsewhere. Italy’s Serie A has hardly re-invented itself into a thriving league – attendances are not increasing, stadia are crumbling and TV deals are not as lucrative as before – but they produced the team of the season in Internazionale, ironically without any Italians in its regular starting line up. So, without further ado, here are the best, the worst and the most horrible of the 2009-10 season.

2009-10 Season: The Best

Love him or loathe him, you cannot ignore Jose Mourinho. He took over two years ago at Inter with one main aim – to win the Champions League, something no manager had done at this club since 1965. They had been the best team in Italy for the past 5 years but were not really taken seriously by the pundits who claimed that the Interistas did not have the character to go beyond the second round. Of course, Jose takes much of the credit for infusing the team with some steel but Inter fans can also look at the transfer deal of the season which saw Zlatan Ibrahimovic move to Barcelona in exchange for Champions League supremo, Samuel Eto’o and cash. That cash bought Brazilian captain Lucio from Bayern Munich, Dutch midfield maestro Wesley Schneider from Real Madrid and Diego Milito from Genoa who all had magnificent seasons for Inter as they won the domestic double and then crowned their season off with that Champions League victory the club had so desired.

A measure of Inter’s achievement is the fact that they beat the best of England, Spain and Germany on their way to the Champions League title. German side Bayern lost in the final but had a magnificent domestic season eventually winning the Bundesliga title rather comfortably after a shaky start that had seen their Dutch manager Van Gaal threatened with the sack. Unlike Jose, his football philosophy is based on attack and with Frenchman Ribery on one side and Dutchman Robben on the other, the Germans knew only one way to play and to emphasise this they demolished Werder Bremen 4-0 in the German Cup final.

After having won 6 titles last season, there was only one way for Barcelona to go and that was down. However, it would be wrong to say that their season was a poor one, after all they won La Liga with a record-breaking points tally of 99 – only dropping 15 points, remarkable indeed. That they won the title on the last day of the season is testament to rivals Real Madrid who pushed them all the way but just fell short, something that could also describe Manchester United’s performance in England this season. Attempting to win the title for a record 4th successive time, their over-reliance on Wayne Rooney left them short of options and ultimately points. So well done to Chelsea who won their 4th ever title by scoring more goals than anyone else, playing some great football on the way and yet why is it that no one really likes them?

Much of our focus during the season is on these four big European leagues but we should also say well done to Marseille for winning their first French title in 19 years, to Rangers for winning in Scotland, to Benfica for winning in Portugal, to Steve McClaren’s FC Twente for winning in Holland but perhaps the biggest surprise was in Turkey where Bursaspor won their first ever title. Congratulations all.

2009-10 Season: The Worst

OK, he was not the worst player of the season and indeed he scored a very respectable 26 goals but he joined Real Madrid to win trophies, something which he did not manage to do. He was, however, sent off twice, missed important games through injury and demonstrated his lack of team play in the defeat against Barcelona. A poor season then for the man with the ridiculous nickname, Cristiano Ronaldo. Other big names to have suffered this season included John Terry who lost the England captaincy for his off-the-field transgressions, Liverpool and Juventus who both failed to qualify for next season’s Champions League, Manchester City who thought they could buy their way into the Champions League and David Beckham, Michael Ballack and Michael Essien who will all miss out on the World Cup thanks to injury.

2009-10 Season: The Horrible

Apologies to those who may actually have really suffered this season but for sheer pain, injustice and downright robbery, then the Republic of Ireland’s elimination from the World Cup via Thierry Henry’s hand was the most horrible moment of the year. To get so close to qualifying for South Africa and then go out like that was painful beyond pain. I apologise (again) for being spiteful and childish but I will be supporting South Africa, Mexico and Uruguay in the group matches against France as I cannot bear to see Henry and his team progress.

On the rest of the page we have a selection of other ‘awards’ concerning the season just past. Let us know what were the best and worst moments from your 2009-2010 season.

Team of the Season
Inter Milan
Players of the Season
Diego Milito / Leo Messi / Arjen Robben / Wayne Rooney
Manager of the Season
Jose Mourinho
Biggest Flop
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Best Goal
It has to be Messi’s goal against Malaga – thanks to Xavi’s pass.
Biggest Idiot
John Terry
Biggest Cheat
Thierry Henry
Craziest Climax to a Season
Bursapor’s title win in Turkey

Vocabulary

hegemony: In this case it means dominance

burst: The expression is burst the bubble which means to destroy the dream or pretence

went into administration: To be unable to pay off debts so an external administrator takes over

restricted: Limited to

massively : Hugely, a large amount

thriving : To be doing well (profitable)

not as lucrative as before: Not worth as much as before

loathe: To hate (him)

the pundits: Football experts, people who talk a lot about the game

infusing the team with some steel: To give the team some character

shaky start: To be a little vulnerable at the beginning of the football year

demolished: To beat easily (thrashed)

tally: Amount or quantity

is testament to: Is witness to – this means that is demonstrates or shows

over-reliance: They relied too much on, they did not have other options

off-the-field transgressions: He was accused of having affairs

elimination from: To be knocked out of

This week’s podcast looks at the stats behind Inter and Bayern’s road to the Champions League final. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we take a look at Bayern Munich and Inter’s chances in the CL – three football fans also give us their views. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below. Explanations of vocabulary in bold appears at the foot of the post.

So, the grand finale to the European football season sees Serie A’s Inter taking on the Bundesliga’s Bayern Munich in the Champions League final in the Bernabeu in Madrid – and like last year when Barcelona beat Manchester United , it is a battle between Champions as both teams have wrapped up their domestic titles. What makes this clash more interesting is the fact that both teams are chasing trebles – the domestic title, the most prestigious national cup trophy and to be crowned European Champions. there is also the added spice of the opposing managers: on the one side, Van Gaal, ex-coach of Barcelona, and on the other, Mourinho, Van Gaal’s interpreter at Barcelona – teacher vs pupil.

But let’s take a look at how the two teams got to the finals.

Goals: Bayern scored 21 and conceded 13 to Inter’s 15 scored and 9 let in.

Shots: Bayern averaged 6.5 shots on target a match compared to Inter’s 5.

Possession: Again Bayern come out on top here with an average of 34 minutes of possession to Inter’s 27.

Fouls: This is one part of the game where Inter come out on top – they averaged 15 fouls a game to Bayern’s 13.

Opposition: Looking at the teams they two faced on their way to the final you have to say Inter faced some tougher matches – they beat Chelsea, CSKA Moscow and many people’s ‘Best Team in the World’, Barcelona, in the knockout stages. This compares to Bayern who needed a bit of luck to get past Fiorentina and Manchester United, before beating Lyon.

All in all, it looks too close to call, making this a great game for the neutral. Let’s here what three neautral fans think.

Vocabulary

wrap up: complete, bring to a close, finish

clash: big game, battle

added spice (extra spice): an extra dimension, something that makes an argument or confrontation more interesting

concede: allow, admit (in football, to allow a goal)

come out on top: win, be victorious

too close to call: to difficult to predict, impossible to decide on a winner

To commemorate Chelsea and Bayern Munich’s domestic doubles on this week’s podcast we look at what it means to win a double and feature some of the most successful double-winning sides in football. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we feature the Double – when a team wins the domestic league and cup. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below. Explanations of vocabulary in bold appears at the foot of the post.

What is a Double?

Very simply to do the double means that a team wins both the league title and the main domestic cup in the same season; so, for example, in England this would mean winning the Premier League and the FA Cup – quite a feat indeed. To win a double, a team has to demonstrate all the traits of a champion – abundant skill, strong character, lots of concentration, good organisation and team work but in order to win the cup then other factors like luck are also necessary.

England

When I was young, few people ever thought they would see another double-winning side again. When Tottenham won it in 1961 it was the first time it had been done since Aston Villa in 1897. Then when Arsenal became only the fourth side to do it in 1971 (Preston had won the double in 1889) we all thought that was that. Teams had to play more games in a season and their focus was firmly on winning international tournaments rather than domestic trophies. However, since Arsenal’s triumph in 1971 it has occurred on 7 more occasions, including this season after Chelsea’s win against Portsmouth in the FA Cup. Arsenal have won the double on three occasions, the last being in 2002, while Manchester United have also won it three times: in 1994, 1996 and in their treble-winning season of 1999. The only other club to have won a double in England is Liverpool when they managed it in 1986.

On this week’s podcast we focus on Germany and their World cup pedigree. They will certainly be a force again in this year’s World cup in South Africa. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we continue with our World Cup series of reports spotlighting countries that will be taking part in the biggest soccer competition in the world in South Africa in June – Germany.

To most football fans around the world, Germany is one of the less popular nations to support. Indeed, when neutrals watch games it is often a common goal to see Germany get beaten. At club football level this has proven to be quite easy in recent years. But at the World Cup Germany has continually performed at an surprisingly high level. With three world cup victories in 1954, 1974 & 1990 and another four final appearances; only Brazil can boast a superior record. And what makes these statistics more interesting is that Germany often seem to enter the World Cup without a host of stars and with losses rather than victories in the group stages

It was in 1954 when German footballing legend was first written. Known as the “Miracle in Bern” Germany defeated the mighty Hungarian side against all odds, and so set in motion decades of success on the field. For Germany, such victories went a long way to helping the wider population regain confidence and once again feel proud of German achievement.

Through the early 70’s, around household names such as Beckenbauer, Mueller and Maier, into the 80’s with Breitner and then the nineties with Klinsmann and Matthaeus, Germany enjoyed more than their fair share of glory. And unsurprisingly one of the steadying influences of these eras is that between 1950 and 1990 Germany only had four different coaches.

But this year might be different. Here is a challenge: How many German players can you name? Apart from Ballack, and perhaps Podolski and Klose, many people struggle to recognize the names on the team sheet. Currently most of the team play in the Bundesliga. Moreover, many of the team are young talents rather than established stars. The job of moulding these players belongs to the coach Jogi Loew, who also has no known managerial experience.

There is experience in the team, but more than this what Germany rely on is mental strength, Teamgeist and a never say die attitude. And Germany will again be hard to beat in South Africa.

Germany will open their world cup campaign against Australia.

Vocabulary

a common goal: a shared wish or hope; something that a group of people all want to do

a host: many; a lot

against all the odds: surprisingly; achieving something despite lots of problems

household names: famous people: well-known people

steadying: calming; bringing confidence

struggle to (do): find it difficult to (do); find it hard to (do)

moulding: shaping; developing

never say die attitude: never giving up; fighting until the end

On this week’s podcast we interview a Mexican fan who tells us all about his country’s chances at the 2010 South Africa World Cup. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we continue with our World Cup countdown by taking a look at Mexico’s chances in the tournament. We ask our Mexican football expert Juan Pablo Camargo how he thinks Mexico will fare this summer. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below.

Introduction

Continuing with our preview of the South Africa World Cup we have an interview with our Mexican football expert Juan Pablo Camargo in which he tells us all about his country’s chances at the World Cup. He focuses on coach Javier Aguirre, discusses some of the players to watch out for, gives us an overall tournament prediction and he starts off by talking about Mexico’s chances of getting past the first round.

Group Stage

Juan Pablo: We are in Group A with South Africa, France and Uruguay.
Damian: What do you think?
JP: I think it’s a tough … group, not because of France because of South Africa, they’re playing home and Mexico usually behaves weirdly in the World Cup so they might panic… they might freak out of playing the first game of the World Cup but I think we are definitely going to make the second round.
DF: OK, so you think their chances of qualifying are pretty good?
JP: Yes, Uruguay qualified like, against … they didn’t qualify in the South America … play-off they had to play Costa Rica in CONCACAF to get a spot and historically Mexico always beats Uruguay. And also against France I’m not that worried because in the last three or four World Cups in the group … in the group stage, Mexico has always played well against the big teams like Italy and the Netherlands. We haven’t lost games against the big teams in the last three World Cups.

The Manager

DF: Can you tell us something about the manager of your team? Who’s the manager of the Mexican national team?

JP: The manager is Javier Aguirre. He was the manager in Korea/Japan World Cup and then he went to Spain to Atlético de Madrid he.. ah no, first he went to Osasuna and he got Osasuna in the Champions League for the first time in history and then he went to Atlético de Madrid and also he got Atlético de Madrid again in the Champions League spot and then he has to basically come back to Mexico and save the Mexican team who was really close to not qualify to the World Cup.
DF: Of course you had Sven Goran Eriksson, didn’t you as your manager. How was that seen in Mexico?
JP: That was a weird experience. We think that they… he just went to steal money there and the team did terrible and there’s also like… politics in Mexican football are really, really hard so I think a lot of players just basically boycott… Eriksson because there’s this belief in Mexico that the Mexican manager should be a Mexican because to do a good thing we need someone who understands our leagues so…

The Players

DF: So which players should we keep an eye out for in the World Cup? Which Mexican players will be starring for you?
JP: You should always keep an eye on Rafael Márquez from Barcelona even though he doesn’t really play well in the Mexican team but he scored against Argentina in the last World Cup so I think he will be doing well. We should also keep an eye on the Mexican players that were playing in the Premier League like Carlos Vela, he’s not even starting for Arsenal but he’s pretty good when he plays in the Mexican squad. Also Giovani dos Santos who was playing in Tottenham and then he went to Galatasaray but he’s a young star – he used to play in Barcelona. And now we have a … my friends from Mexico told me we have this new star called (Javier) “Chicharito” Hernández, he’s from Chivas so he’s scoring pretty… he’s scoring in the league a lot and in friendly matches so I think… I hope he’s going to be like … a big player. Never, never forget about Cuauhtémoc Blanco, he’s old but he’s always like the driving power of the team and he has a lot of experience and he’s like …other teams respect him so he’s gonna’ do well too.
DF: I must admit I didn’t think he was still playing, he’s playing in America… in North America yes?
JP: Yes, he’s playing in Chicago Fire but in the break… actually in the break, he’s in a break now so he has to go and play in the second division team in Mexico to be active but now he’s, like, more mature so I think he… he’s definitely is a very important part of the team.

Prediction

DF: Now if Mexico don’t win the World Cup which team do you think will win the World Cup?
JP: I might go for Spain but I think Spain … also tend to freak out in the last minute so I don’t know, I think it’s going to be again … again between Italy, Brazil and the usual teams because I think the competition just helps you to do that, like, to get really easy first stages to get into those … I really hope it’s Spain.
DF: Can you see a dark horse threatening?
JP: Mexico!

On this week’s show we preview the second legs of the Champions League semi-finals which are beautifully poised after last week’s matches. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we feature the Champions League semi-finals. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below.

The second legs of the two semi-finals of the Champions League take place this week with both ties so delicately poised that football pundits are at a loss to predict a winner. Anyway, that has never stopped languagecaster before so here we go with a preview of the two games and of course our predictions!

When this season’s competition kicked off at the end of June, few would have predicted that the semi-finals would have four teams from four different countries taking part – none of them from England. Such was the domination of Premier League clubs that last season’s defeat of Manchester United in the final was simply seen as a blip. So, when the 76 teams from 52 different countries entered the competition way back in June of last year, it was yet again expected that Premier League sides would be challenging for the Europe’s top club tournament. But with Barcelona destroying Arsenal and Manchester United falling to Bayern Munich at the quarter-final stage, for the first time in five years there will be no team from the Premier League in the final, which this year will take place in Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu on May 22nd – the first ever time there will be a Saturday final. It will also be a tough night for Madrid fans for not only are their side unable to add to their record haul of nine titles but they may have to watch their dreaded rivals Barcelona retain the trophy on their home turf. And if it’s not the Catalan side, then they may well be haunted by one of two players that the Madrid team let go last summer for not being good enough: Wesley Schneider from Inter Milan and Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben. So, who is your money on to reach the 55th European Cup final?

Barcelona vs Inter Milan

Can there be a more mouth-watering tie than this? The aesthetically-pleasing Barcelona against the physically imposing and tactically astute Inter Milan. Their manager Jose Mourinho has dramatically changed the mentality of the side that, though domestically strong, were never seen as real threats in European competition. Now this has changed and there is a sense that this could be Inter’s year to finally win back the trophy they last held 45 years ago. They hold a 3-1 lead after some controversial decisions went their way in the San Siro last week and are seen as slight favourites by the bookmakers. Barca need at least a 2-0 victory and despite Mourinho’s claims to the contrary they can never be written off particularly with Xavi and Messi in their team. they are also owed a big game by Ibrahimovic who was particularly disappointing in Milan. I think Inter will score but Barcelona will simply score more and eventually run out winners – maybe 4-1 after extra time.

Lyon vs Bayern Munich

Now Bayern are strong favourites to make it through to their eighth final after a 1-0 home victory over Lyon in their first leg match. Lyon were poor and for long periods of the game were outplayed by the Germans even when they had a man advantage – that was thanks to Franck Ribéry’s red card. When their captain Jeremy Toulalan was also dismissed soon after, the momentum swung back in Bayern’s favour and thanks to another wonder strike from Dutch star Arjen Robben they have the edge in this semi-final. But Bayern have a poor away record in Europe, they’re missing Ribéry and surely Lyon cannot play so badly again, this means that I am going for a shock Lyon win to become the first French side to make the final since Monaco 6 years ago.

Vocabulary

delicately poised: Perfectly balanced; difficult to predict

football pundits: Football experts – journalists

are at a loss : Do not know how to explain something; clueless

a blip: A small mistake, something unusual

haul: Collection (of titles)

dreaded rivals: Hated rivals; the team that your team dislikes the most; most feared opponents

be haunted:

who is your money on : Which team do you think will win? (Betting term)

a more mouth-watering tie: A ‘delicious’ game; a match that everyone wants to see

dismissed: To be sent off; to receive a red card

On this week’s show we spotlight World Cup hopefuls, England, as well as reviewing Tottenham’s win over Arsenal and looking ahead to some great derbies taking place this weekend. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we spotlight England in our look at countries taking part in the 2010 World cup in South Africa. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below.

England, the home of such icons of football as the FA cup, Wembley stadium and David Beckham, is the largest and most populous country in the United Kingdom. It is also the UK’s most successful nation in the World Cup: it won the competition in 1966, reached the semi-finals in 1990, and has got as far as the quarter-finals on six occasions. It is also, of course, the country which gave football to the world, and for many years felt no need to compete with other countries in the FIFA organized tournament. When it did finally choose to join the competition in 1950, the professionals of England were given a rude shock when the upstarts from the USA completed the “miracle on grass” and beat the self-appointed best team in the World 1-0 in Brazil. Ever since then England fans have experienced many more disappointments in the Cup, usually after failures in penalty shoot-outs.

England today is a very multi-cultural society, with inhabitants who can trace their roots back to all four corners of the globe. This is especially true in the top-tier of its football league. The English Premier League (EPL) now attracts many of the top players from Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas, and matches from the EPL are broadcast back to millions of TVs in the same regions. Top teams from the league, such as Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United are also household names around the world and have recently become dominant in European competitions. But where has this influx of foreign players and success in Europe left the national game in England?

Well two years ago, England failed to qualify for Euro 2008, which resulted in the manager, Steve McClaren, losing his job. The FA turned to a foreign coach for the second time to take charge of the national team. Fabio Cappello cracked down on discipline and revitalized the team. England went on to win 9 out of 10 games in its World Cup qualifying group, scoring a hatful of goals along the way. Under the Italian’s tenure, Rooney has blossomed as a striker, and Cappello has also brought about improved performances from the likes of Lennon, Milner and Walcott in wide positions, and Gerrard in midfield who had previously struggled to match his club form for country.

So how well will the current team perform this summer in the World Cup in South Africa? On paper, it has been drawn in a relatively easy group, facing the USA, Algeria and Slovenia in the first round. Even if the US can repeat the shock of 60 years ago, England should still get through to the knock-out stages where they could face a stiffer challenge from the likes Germany, Serbia or Ghana. Even so, expectations for further progress will remain high with many home fans and pundits alike predicting a semi-final place at the least. Whether they can manage this will greatly depend on weaknesses in the goalkeeping position and left side not being over-exposed, and of course better luck at scoring from the penalty spot.

Vocabulary

icon: symbol, hero, famous thing

to compete with: to play against

upstart: youngster who dares to challenge an older person; (in this case) a team with no long history playing against a team with a lot of history; cheeky

all four corners: everywhere, all places, a wide area

influx: a large number of people entering a country; stream of people; flood of people

turn to: look for help, ask someone for help, choose

crack down on: be strict; be severe; don’t allow any bad behaviour; stop

a hatful: a lot; many

to blossom: to grow; to develop; to mature

stiffer: more difficult; a bigger challenge

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we look ahead to the big match in Spain this week between Real Madrid and Barcelona. You can listen to the report by clicking above and can read the transcript below

Saturday sees one of the most important matches in world football when Real Madrid and Barcelona meet in Madrid’s Santiago Bernebeu Stadium. Of course we all know about the rivalry between these two sides – Barca claim to represent the region of Catalonia while Madrid are viewed as Spain’s team. But this season’s game has added spice. The two sides are locked together at the top of La Liga on 77 points – a massive 21 points ahead of third placed Valencia – with an almost identical goal difference, meaning that if there is a winner this weekend then they will go a long way to becoming champions. In addition to this, there is the battle between two players whose fans suggest that they are the best in the world – Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Barcelona’s Leo Messi.

Messi vs Ronaldo

Messi has been receiving the plaudits after an amazing performance against Arsenal in the Champions League this week but that was no one off. He has scored 39 goals already this season with three hat-tricks in the league and has been consistently brilliant for Barca throughout. Ronaldo’s figures seem somewhat less impressive with a league tally of 18 though they have come in only 21 matches. Of course, there are other match winners in both sides. Gonzalo Higuain, another Argentinian, has scored 24 times this season for Madrid and will be hoping to add to that tally thanks to support from Xabi Alonso and Brazilian playmaker Kaka, though it looks like he could miss the game through injury. As for Barcelona they will be boosted by the return of Swedish striker Ibrahimovic and Spanish international Iniesta who will partner Xavi in midfield to ensure that Madrid will have to work extremely hard to gain possession of the ball.

Revenge

Madrid will also want to erase last season’s humiliation from their minds – they were thrashed 2-6 at home by a rampant Barca who went on to win the title. That day the Catalan side were unplayable but will find this Madrid team in top form – they are on a 12-game winning streak and have won all 15 of their league matches at home this season though Barcelona themselves have only lost once throughout the campaign. This promises to be a real thriller and predicting it is a hazardous job but I am going for a 2-1 away victory for Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.

On this week’s show we preview el clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona as well as taking a look back at the Champions League quarter-finals and a look forward to the FA Cup semi-finals. Remember you can also:

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On this week’s show we spotlight the quarter final games in the Champions League. Remember you can also:

Automatically receive the podcast each week by clicking here

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we take a look at the second legs of the Champions League quarter finals.  You can listen to the report by clicking above. There is vocabulary support at the bottom of the post.

Next week, the eight teams left in the Champion League meet in the second legs hoping to progress to the semis. Let’s take the ties one by one.

First, Barcelona v Arsenal. In the first leg in London neutrals and Barca fans were left drooling as the Catalan side utterly dominated the English side in the first 45 minutes. In the whole game, they enjoyed 65% of the possession and had 23 shots compared to Arsenal’s 6. It’s difficult to pick a stand out player from the tie, but ironically perhaps it was Almunia the Arsenal goalkeeper who held back the tide and kept the Gunners in with a shout. At the Nou Camp it is hard to see how Arsenal can overcome the reigning European Champions, especially with their captain, Fabregas, out suspended and injured. Both sides will be missing their first choice centre backs, but Barcelona look better equipped to take advantage. 2-0 to Barcelona.

Second, CSKA Moscow v Inter. A slender 1-0 lead is all Inter can take to Moscow after a frustrating night in Milan. Inter were the better side and it looked like the Russian side had come for the draw. I wasn’t until the 65th minute that the Argentinian, Milito, broke the deadlock with a shot on the edge of the area. CSKA will be hoping that playing in front of their fans will help them, but Inter will be confident that they can progress, after all a goal from the Italian side will leave CSKA needing to score three. The sides met in the 2007 Champions League group stages and Inter won the tie in Moscow 2-1. A repeat of that would suit them.

Next, Bordeaux v Lyon. Bordeaux went into the tie complaining about a rescheduled game for Lyon that they suggested gave their opponents more time to recover for the clash, and the war of words off the pitch translated into a frenetic and pulsating tie that despite the 3-1 scoreline in favour of Lyon was much closer. The key moment was a penalty awarded to Lyon with 13 minutes to play. It was a controversial decision with Bordeaux’s Chalme adjudged to have handled in the area. For the return leg, Laurent Blanc’s side will have key defender Diarra back and with their away goal they are by no means out of this.

Finally, Manchester United v Bayern Munich. The German side surprised most pundits by beating United 2-1 at the Allianz Arena. The German side dominated United after falling behind to a Rooney strike in the second minute and United have their goalkeeper to thank for keeping the score so close. They were also perhaps lucky that Bayern’s in-form winger, Robben, wasn’t playing, as he would surely have stretched the United full backs more. The main talking point with the return leg, however, is the injury to Rooney. Can United pose a threat without him? At the same time, Bayern will probably have Robben and Schweinsteiger back. The German’s must fancy their chances of going through to the semis.

Vocabulary

left (fans) drooling: made fans admire them, played so well that fans were very impressed

slender lead: small lead, not a big advantage

deadlock: a situation when no team has scored, or no team is winning, stalemate

pulsating tie: exciting game, a match with a lot of attacking by both sides, lots of action

adjudge: judge, decide, say

talking point: subject of discussion, key action

fancy (their) chances: think they can win, consider their odds of winning as good

On this week’s show we feature an interview with an expert on Mexican football, Juan Pablo Camargo, who tells us all about the Primera División de México. Remember you can also:

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Each week on languagecaster’s podcast we feature a main report and on this week’s show we have an interview with an expert on Mexican football, Juan Pablo Camargo, who tells us all about the Primera División de México. You can listen to the report by clicking above.

DF: Now for this week’s main report we have a special guest interview with top Mexican football blogger Juan Pablo Camargo and is going to tell us all about the Mexican League. We met recently down by the River Thames here in London and I started by asking him about the structure of the Mexican league which often looks rather confusing to outsiders.

Juan Pablo: I think to understand the league you should think about it as maybe the North American leagues of baseball, no, or even American football I think that’s the most useful. Because we are divided in groups and we don’t play … for example in England you play for points and the one who has more points in the end wins. So in Mexico you just play and then you qualify to the play-offs. The first two teams of each group or three teams qualify to the play-offs and then in the play-off you can be a champion even though you qualified in the eighth place.
DF: So the eighth best team could be the supreme champion of Mexican football for example?
JP: It happens a lot actually. We have two tournaments a year – apertura and clausura – and we play from August to December and you can be champion there and then you can start again in January and be the champion in June.
DF: So this particular structure is similar to Argentina or other countries in South America?
JP: They copied the two leagues from Argentina because we used to have the one whole … the one whole year league… with play-offs.
DF: OK, how are the groups organised? Is it geographical?
JP: Er… no, randomly weird Mexican federation criteria.
DF: I mean, what’s the feeling of Mexican football fans, are they happy with the structure?
JP: We’re happy with the structure because the league is not that competitive so the play-offs make it pretty fun. But basically you don’t care about the league in the regular season and you start caring in the… in the play-offs, so that’s fun. But we think that really affects, like, our level of competition internationally because teams are just lazy all year long.
DF: Interesting. Now obviously you are a Pumas fan, what are the big teams in Mexican club football? Can you tell us a little bit about the big teams in Mexico and maybe some of the rivalries that they enjoy?
JP: Sadly, the biggest team is Guadalajara, Chivas, they are the most popular team. They are from the second biggest city in Mexico and the thing… the fact is that they are popular because they have this … philosophy of just having Mexican players in the team so people in Mexico feels that they are supporting … feel that they are supporting Mexico if they support Chivas. And the second big team is América who is like the arch-rival from Guadalajara so that is the classic, it’s like the Barcelona- Real Madrid should be that. In the last years, they have like, used that a lot for marketing so they have played a lot of friendly matches between them so I think it’s lost its soul but that’s the big rivalry. Then the third one, the biggest one would be Cruz Azul from Mexico City too and the fourth one in popularity would be Pumas. So, between Pumas and Cruz Azul there is also a big rivalry but between these whole four it’s the biggest rivalry in all football like Pumas fans hate América fans and those are really even dangerous games. The other big, big rivalry is in the north, in Monterrey, we have two teams, Monterrey and Tigres, who are from the university, so that’s one of the biggest rivalries there too.
DF: Fantastic. Now how is the league going this season? Who is doing well and who is doing not so well?
JP: As this week, it’s … Monterrey is in the first place, Chivas was doing amazing actually this year and they’re in second place but they were unbeaten in the first six, seven games. So Chivas is going pretty well and actually the big teams are in the first eight now, Pumas is in fourth, Cruz Azul is in seventh, America is in eight. But again, like, in two weeks maybe another team can just start winning and be the champions – it’s not a guarantee to be in the top spot in Mexico.
DF: When will the play-offs start?
JP: The play-offs start in mid-May, I think, and they run for three weeks because it’s just quarter-finals, semi-final and finals.
DF: OK, so you’re confident that your team UNAM will be there?
JP: Definitely, UNAM will be there.
DF: And do you think they can win the whole thing?
JP: They are playing way better than last year. Last year they ended up in the last place but the year before… the tournament before that they were champions so basically they have the same team as last time they won the championship so I think they have a pretty good shot but the problem is that a lot of players from these big teams are going to start joining the Mexican squad for the World Cup so the play-offs would be with no … big players, so that really can…
DF: Wow, that’s amazing I could not imagine the Premier League sanctioning that with England players. So, you’re saying that the top players from the clubs will leave to join the Mexican World Cup squad?
JP: That’s correct, yes. They usually take like one month of concentration or two months to get the team done…
DF: Well, good luck to Pumas and I hope they do very well this season.

Juan Pablo’s blog is at http://www.futbolmexico.mx/

On this week’s show we feature Ligue 1. We take a look at some background to the season, the contenders for the title, the relegation situation and French clubs in Europe. Remember you can also:

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This week we take a look at France’s Ligue 1. You can listen to the report by clicking above while vocabulary support can be found for the words in bold at the foot of the post.

Background

There are 20 teams in Ligue 1 and the current title holders are Bordeaux, who halted Olympique Lyonnais’ record run of seven straight titles victories last year. Every year, three teams are relegated and three promoted, and this year Lens, Montpellier and Boulogne replaced Caen, Nantes and le Havre.

The contenders

Currently, there are six teams withing three points of each other at the top of Ligue 1, making the run-in to the season a very exciting one. Champions, Bordeaux are in pole position on 53 points and a game in hand over their rivals. But the club from the south west of France have only managed to pick up one win in six games and have lost momentum. A team with momentum is Auxerre in third place on 51 points with five wins in six, including a win over leaders Bordeaux. they sit one point behind surprise package Montpellier, newly relegated and impressing everyone with their confident attacking style. can they overhaul Bordeaux and stop the Champions adding to their six titles, or will they fade and let more established clubs like Lyon and Marseilles in fifth and sixth respectively contest for the title? last year’s fourth place finishers Lille sit in fourth place at this stage of the season on 51 points and have been solid performers in recent seasons and will be hoping to qualify for the Champions League at least this season.

At the bottom

At the foot of the table it looks a lot clearer. Grenoble, just south east of Lyon and St Etienne, look doomed to go down. They have just 14 points, 15 points from safety. And probably joining them will be Le Mans on 21 points, and Boulogne on 20. Le mans may hold out some hope that St Etienne, 7 points ahead of them will slip up again and drop further and that the team from the centre of France can win its game in hand to further close the gap, but it doesn’t look promising. These three teams will most likely be playing in Ligue 2 next season.

Europe

This season has been a good one for French clubs, but not outstanding. They have two representatives left in the Champions League quarter final stages – Lyon and Bordeaux. Lyon of course stunned European giants Real Madrid 2-1 on aggregate showing that money doesn’t always buy success, and they shouldn’t fear anyone. However, history says bet against them progressing as they’ve appeared 11 times in the Champions League but have never got further than the quarter final stage. Bordeaux booked their place in the last eight with a 3-1 aggregate win over Olympiacos. On paper, not as impressive as Lyon’s victory, but like Lyon, they won both legs of the tie. Their one worry could be losing focus in the league by concentrating on Europe. While the two clubs have done well to get this far, I don’t expect them to make it through to the semi finals.

In the Europa League things were looking quite good until this week when Ligue 1’s last representatives, Lille and Marseille were knocked out by Liverpool and Benfica respectively.

So overall better than last year, but only a semi-final place in the Champions League would really make people sit up and take note. And whose going to win the league? For football romantics, a Montpellier win would be great, but I think it will be back to back wins for Bordeaux.

Vocabulary

current: at the present time, reigning

the run in: the final stretch, the last part, nearly the end

surprise package: an unexpectedly strong team

solid performers: consistent, not outstanding/fantastic, but regularly good

slip up: make a mistake, fail

book a place: win in a competition so that you go through to the next round

sit up and take note: take seriously, be interested in

On this week’s show we feature the World Cup of 1950 when Uruguay upset all the odds to win their second tournament and send Brazil into mourning. Remember you can also:

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Continuing our World Cup countdown we feature one of the most dramatic tournaments to have taken place, the 1950 World Cup in Brazil in this week’s main report. You can listen to the report by clicking above while vocabulary support can be found for the words in bold at the foot of the post.

Background

The 1950 World Cup was the first tournament to be held after the Second World War and as much of Europe’s infrastructure had been destroyed, FIFA turned to Brazil to host the fourth World Cup. Before the competition had even started there was drama with many teams pulling out for a variety of reasons: Argentina didn’t go because they were in dispute with their neighbours Brazil, Scotland had qualified by coming second in their group behind England but refused to travel as they were not British champions. Turkey pulled out and then so did their replacements, France, while India withdrew because they were not allowed to play barefoot. Austria felt their team was too young while Germany were banned from international competition leaving a total of 13 teams to participate.

Group Stages

Rather bizarrely the 13 teams were divided into 4 groups, two of which contained 4 teams, one with three and one group comprised only Uruguay and Bolivia with the Uruguayans easily qualifying. The hosts found themselves in the same group as Mexico, Switzerland and Yugoslavia and despite only drawing with the Swiss managed to make it to the final stage. Sweden also made it there after knocking out Italy which may have seemed a surprise but the Italian side had been badly depleted after an air crash in 1949 had killed all of the Torino squad, a squad that had dominated Italian football and indeed made up the bulk of the national side. England, making their first ever appearance in a World Cup, were expected to qualify from their group but succumbed to one of the most embarrassing defeats in their history when they lost 0-1 to the USA. So unthinkable was this defeat that many back home thought there had been a misprint in their newspapers on reading about Joe Gaetjens’ goal.

The Final Stage

FIFA had decided that there would be no final match in this competition but instead there was a group play-off between the final four teams. The hosts Brazil thrashed Sweden 7-1 and then trounced Spain 6-1 meaning that they only needed a draw against their South American neighbours from Uruguay who had beaten Spain but drawn with Sweden. The whole of Brazil was confident of victory with the mayor of Rio de Janeiro proclaiming the team as world champions before the game had even kicked off and newspapers already preparing front page headlines describing the Brazilians as champions. Approximately 200.000 people crammed into the newly built Maracana Stadium to watch this coronation and when Brazil went 1-0 up it seemed that everyone’s belief had been correct. But with 30 minutes remaining Uruguayan star Schiaffino scored and then 20 minutes later the unthinkable happened – Gigghia beat Brazilian keeper Barbosa at the near post to snatch an unlikely victory for Uruguay. They had won their second World Cup and left Brazil stunned.

Vocabulary

to host: To hold the tournament, the place where the competition takes place

pulling out: To withdraw, to not play for a reason

were in dispute with: To not have friendly relations with (arguing with)

to play barefoot: To play football without football boots

Rather bizarrely: Strangely, seemingly no reason for the decision

comprised: Made up of

The hosts: The country where the competition takes place (Brazil)

depleted: To have been weakened

made up the bulk of : To have supplied most of the national team from one club (Torino).

succumbed to: To lose out to

thrashed: To be badly beaten

trounced: To be badly beaten

crammed into: Packed into, too many people in one place

to snatch an unlikely victory: To win when no one expected it, snatch suggests stole the victory!

On this week’s show we ask, ‘why hasn’t football taken off in India, the second most populous nation on Earth?’. Remember you can also:

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Last week, I visited Mumbai, India. Mumbai is arguably the most cosmopolitan city in India, the business centre, and home to 12 million Mumbaikers. While I was there I saw people walking around sporting Manchester United and AC Milan fake tops, Beckham T-shirts, and in the shop windows there are Chelsea, Man United, and Real Madrid school bags. Despite this, I hardly saw anybody playing football in the streets or in the many parks and beaches in the city. And there was nothing about local football in the newspapers. Why don’t most Indians play or follow football?