Here are some words and phrases you can hear on this weeka€™s languagecastera€™s Good, Bad and Ugly section of the podcast – a review of the footballing news. For more English practice check out our worksheets, football glossary and English for football phrases.
[print_link]- To dent (hopes): To damage hopes, to spoil
Example: Liverpool dented Arsenal’s title hopes after a 1-1 draw last week.
- A must-win game: An important match, a game that a team must win!
Example: Wenger had said that the Liverpool match was a must-win one.
- Merseyside: The area around Liverpool (the river Mersey flows through the city)
Example: The Merseyside derby is one of the biggest in Britain.
- To field: To pick or to choose members of a team
Example: Droylsden fielded an illegal player in last week’s FA Cup match.
- Ineligible: Illegal, not allowed to play
Example: Droylston fielded an ineligible player last week.
- Prestigious: Very famous and important, usually some tradition connected to it.
Example: The FA Cup is an extremely prestigious tournament.
- Boxing Day: The 26th December (UK term)
Example: There is a full schedule of fixtures on Boxing Day.
- A tie: Another word for a game or match.
Example: The Arsenal-Liverpool tie was a nasty affair.
- Studs: Part of the football boot (oyu can find them on the sole), which helps to prevent slipping.
Example: Arsenal’s Adebayor showed his studs in a tackle and received a yellow card.
- To go over the ball (top): A very bad and dangerous tackle.
Example: Adebayor went over the ball in his tackle on Arbeloa.
- Crunch game: Extremely important match
Example: Celtic against rangers is always a crunch game in Scotland.