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Subscribe: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
An interesting week for Chelsea captain John Terry, the New Zealand FA doesn’t cover itself in glory and not so good for Manchester City. You can listen to these and other stories on our weekly podcast and can find explanations of key vocabulary in bold below.
The Good
We have given Chelsea captain, John Terry, a hard time over the past few months but here at languagecaster we have to admit that his form has picked up in recent times. Terry has had a good week with his team Chelsea hitting form – so much so that they could even mount a challenge to Manchester United for the title, while JT – that of course is his nickname – has been re-named as England captain by coach Capello. The turnaround has surprised many but it cannot be denied that Terry’s form, along with Rio Ferdinand’s injuries, means that he is the right man to lead England.
The Bad
On the 11th of March, just over a week ago, a devastating earthquake and tsunami hit the north of Japan. Only a few weeks earlier an earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, also hit. On the 29th March, next Tuesday, a friendly game was scheduled between Japan and New Zealand. What a moment that could of been as both countries shared their grief and also stood together to remember the victims of the natural disasters. It would have been a great footballing moment. But the New Zealand FA decided to cancel the game because of safety concerns surrounding the Fukushima Nuclear plant. This despite the fact that the match would be played in Osaka, hundreds of miles to the south. Their own embassy also said there was no danger. a€œAt this time emotions are running extremely high in New Zealand, and sadly the decision to proceed with a football match in this context was not feasible,” said New Zealand Football Chairman Frank van Hattum. Strange, it’s OK to play a football game against China four days earlier. What a bad decision.
The Ugly
They have more money than any other team in the world. They have brought in players of the calibre of Tevez, Yaya Toure and David Silva yet Manchester City have not captured the imagination or the hearts of the English football public. Dour, overly-cautious and frankly, quite boring are all adjectives to describe their style. For such a big club with so much money why do they play in such an ugly manner?
Vocabulary
his team hitting form: Chelsea are starting to play well again
turnaround: The England coach Capello changed his mind about John Terry’s position as England captain.
friendly game: A game that is not part of a competition, a league etc.
stand together: support each other
FA: Football Association
of the calibre of: The level, the status
Dour: Little joy, overly dark
