Football Language: To sweat on
This week we read in the newspapers that Liverpool were sweating on the fitness of their star forward Philippe Coutinho. What’s the meaning of ‘to sweat on‘ in this phrase? In football players run, jump, tackle and generally move a lot and this exercise makes them sweat. A person can also sweat when he or she is worried or nervous about something and this is what is meant when we use ‘to sweat on‘ here; Liverpool are worried that Coutinho will not be fit enough to play this weekend – they are sweating on Coutinho’s fitness.
- Example: The club are sweating on the announcement of the federation – they are worried that they may receive a ban.