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Barcelona, Wolfsburg, Burnley and Paolo Maldini all celebrate but misery on Tyneside and controversy in Serie A all feature on this week’s good, the bad and the ugly section of languagecaster’s football podcast. Click on the links below to find out more on all of these stories. Explanations of key vocabulary (in bold) can be found at the foot of the page.
The Good
Barcelona win their third Champions League title after comfortably beating Manchester United 2-0 in Rome with a first half strike by Samuel Eto’o and a glorious header from the smallest player on the pitch, Lionel Messi, in the second. Having already won the Spanish League and the King’s Cup they have now won an unprecedented treble – the first time a Spanish team has performed this feat. Well done Barca and new manager Pep Guardiola.
Good in the Bundesliga for Wolfsburg who wrap up the title in emphatic style, beating a shell-shocked Werder Bremen 5-1. It’s the first title for the VW-backed side from Lower Saxony and in Grafite and Dzeko they have the top striking pair in Bundesliga history.
Well done to Burnley after they gained promotion to the Premier League and join the top division in England for the first time since 1976 after beating the Blades, Sheffield United, 1-0 in the Championship play-off. They join Aston Villa and West Ham in wearing claret and blue kits. Look at the socks to tell them apart.
The Bad
Bad, bad, bad for the north east of England which saw two teams drop down to the second tier last weekend. It was particularly bad for Newcastle, a team who regularly have over 50,000 fans watch their home games, as they were beaten 1-0 by Aston Villa. Their problems won’t stop there, as they have some big name players with big wages, a question mark over who will manage them, and who will own them next year. Troubled times on Tyneside.
The actions of some of AC Milan’s fans at Paolo Maldini’s last home game for the club after playing for the club, and only their club, since appearing in the youth side in 1978, 31 years ago was very bad. “Thanks captain. On the pitch you were an undying champion but you had no respect for those who made you rich,” read one banner on the curva sud, home of the Ultras. What a terrible send off for one of the club’s greatest servants and one of the game’s greatest players. Very bad.
The Ugly
There was some Champions League final-related violence with one Manchester United fan being stabbed in the leg before the game, while in Barcelona more than 100 people were arrested celebrating the Catalan side’s victory.
Seven Torino and two Genoa players have been banned following a post-match brawl in a Serie A match last weekend. There are conflicting stories about the reason for the fight but either way it was pretty ugly. Check out the video here
Vocabulary
Here are some of the words and phrases from the good, the bad and the ugly section from this week’s show. You can download the podcast here
a first half strike: A successful shot that resulted in a goal
a glorious header: A wonderful or fantastic headed goal
an unprecedented treble: A team in Spain has never won these three Cups
performed this feat: The first time that someone has done something
wrap up the title: To win the title
shell-shocked: A team that looks demoralised, they seem to know they won’t win, they are in shock
gained promotion to: The team went up from one division to another
the Championship: The division below the Premier League in England
claret and blue kits: The uniform that Burnley play in is a deep red and blue colour
second tier: The Championship, the level below the Premier League
Tyneside: This refers to Newcastle (the city is on the River Tyne)
curva sud: The place where many of the Ultras stand during a game (behind one of the goals)
Ultras: A group of fans at Italian (and some Spanish) clubs; quite powerful
a terrible send off: A farewell party that turns sour, not as good as it should have been
stabbed: Attacked with a knife
a post-match brawl: A fight after the game between some of the players
