
Football Language: To be dropped
This week Manchester City striker Raheem Sterling was dropped by England manager Gareth Southgate after an altercation (or fight) with Joe Gomez while on England duty. This means that Sterling was omitted or left out of the side – he was dropped from the squad and had to sit out the next game. Now, the phrase ‘to be dropped‘ can mean that a player has not been selected or picked for the starting xi because they are not playing well – their poor form has meant they are dropped or, as in Sterling’s case, the player has been punished by the manager. When a striker is misfiring – not scoring any goals – or a goalkeeper has lost confidence then the manager must decide whether or not to drop the player – always a difficult decision. Although some players are simply undroppable, think about Messi or Ronaldo, but most professional players have been dropped at some stage in their career – I remember when David Beckham was left out of the England squad and people were amazed that he had been dropped.A To be dropped.
Example: ‘Raheem Sterling dropped by England after Joe Gomez clash before Euro 2020 qualifier’ (BBC.co.uk November 13th 2019)