Matchweek 3: Up for grabs

Introduction  

Jack: Hello my name’s Jack and welcome to our weekly round-up section called ‘This Week’ on Premier Skills English.

Rich: Hi there. I’m Rich. We’ve got lots of interesting words and phrases to help you talk about football in English.

Jack: We want you to use and practise these phrases by interacting with Premier League fans from around the world in our comments section.

Rich: If you listen to us on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, you can leave your comments in the review section. We do read all the reviews and would love to hear from you.

Jack: You can find all our latest content on the Premier Skills English homepage or the Premier Skills-British Council Facebook page. 

Rich: The new Premier League season has kicked off so let’s start with our headlines!

Headlines

Jack: Liverpool set the Premier League pace.

Rich: Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Arsenal leaves the Reds as the only team with a 100% record after three Premier League matches. Joel Matip made the breakthrough just before the break. Mohamed Salah added a second from the spot just after the break and then a third when he went on a dazzling solo run to score the goal of the match.

Jack: Lightning strikes twice at Old Trafford.

Rich: Crystal Palace stunned Manchester United with a 2-1 win as Palace scored their first goals of the season. Old Trafford fell silent when Jordan Ayew put Palace ahead in the first half. United struggled to break down a determined defence and Marcus Rashford missed a second-half penalty. United looked to have grabbed a point when Daniel James got a stunning last-minute equaliser but Palace had other ideas and Patrick van Aanholt scored a stunner in the 93rd minute to give Palace all three points.

Jack: Chelsea come out on top against Norwich.

Rich: A seesaw battle saw Chelsea claim all three points as they got a 3-2 away win at Norwich City. Tammy Abraham put Chelsea ahead after only three minutes but the hosts equalised through Todd Cantwell just three minutes later. Another goal for Chelsea and another equaliser for Norwich left the scores level at the break and three points up for grabs. It was Chelsea who grabbed the opportunity when Abraham scored his second of the game to give the Blues victory.

Jack: It was another great weekend of Premer League action. There were also wins for Aston Villa, Leicester City, Southampton and West Ham.

Vocabulary alert!

Rich: In our vocabulary alert, we look at some football English that we used in the headlines.

Jack: Our six words and phrases this week are: to set the pace, the break, a dazzling solo run, stunning, a seesaw battle and to be up for grabs.

Rich: Let’s start with the phrase to set the pace. This phrase comes from running. To set the pace means to run faster than the other runners; especially at the beginning of the race.

Jack: So we said that Liverpool are setting the pace in the Premier League because they are the only team with three wins out of three. Thye have more points than the other teams.

Rich: The next phrase is the break. The break is basically half-time. The players rest for 15 minutes. You often hear phrases like ‘it’s one each at the break’ or ‘they scored just before the break’.

Jack: Mohamed Salah scored after a dazzling solo run. Something that is dazzling means it’s amazing or fantastic and a solo run is when you do a run or dribble with the ball without passing to a teammate.

Rich: It was a brilliant goal! In our second headline, about the Manchester United match, we used the words stunning, stunned and a stunner. These are used a lot in football so let’s take a look.

Jack: We used the verb first. We said Palace stunned United. Stunned means surprised or shocked here.

Rich: We used the adjective. We said Daniel James scored a stunning equaliser. Stunning means fantastic here.

Jack: Finally, we used the noun. We said Patrick van Aanholt scored a stunner. A stunner is an amazing or fantastic goal.

Rich: In the final headline, about the Chelsea-Norwich match, we used a couple of more unusual phrases or idioms.

Jack: We said that the Chelsea - Norwich match was a seesaw battle. A seesaw is a piece of equipment you find in a children’s playground. It’s a long piece of wood that is supported in the middle. A child sits on one end and another child sits on the other. First one is up and then they  go down and the other one goes up. 

Rich: A seesaw battle is a match that changes a lot. First one team is winning and then the other. A bit like a seesaw!

Jack: Our final phrase this week is to be up for grabs. This is an informal phrase that means available to anyone who is interested. You often use it about shopping and discounts. You might tell someone ‘there are some cheap trainers up for grabs in the sale in the market’.

Rich: In football, we often say things like ‘there are three points up for grabs’ or ‘the win is up for grabs’ when the match is level in the second half. The win and three points are available to the team that plays better.

Jack: OK, so there are our six words and phrases. Listen to this part of the podcast again if you are not sure how to use them.

Rich: The words and phrases are: to set the pace, the break, a dazzling solo run, stunning, a seesaw battle and to be up for grabs.

Football Awards

Jack: Right, every week, we give out three Matchweek awards. 

Rich: The awards are Player of the Week, Team of the Week and Goal of the Week.

Jack: In the comments section, you need to tell us if you agree with our choices.

Rich: Let’s start with Player of the Week. Mohamed Salah scored twice for Liverpool, Tammy Abraham did the same for Chelsea.

Jack: But our Player of the Week is West Ham’s Sebastian Haller who also scored two: his first goals for West Ham and his first goals in the Premier League.

Rich: The next award is for Team of the Week. Good wins for Chelsea, Liverpool and Aston Villa who got their first win back in the Premier League.

Jack: But, we’re going to go for Crystal Palace. Palace hadn’t scored a goal this season so I think a 2-1 away win at Manchester United surprised a few people.

Rich: Finally, our Goal of the Week. We’re going to leave this one to you. We’re going to give you three options and you need to tell us which you think was best. Jack.

Jack: Goal number one: Harvey Barnes for Leicester City v Sheffield United. A brilliant half-volley that gave the Foxes all three points.

Rich: Goal number two: Daniel James for Manchester United v Crystal Palace. A lovely curling finish but it wasn’t enough for United against Palace.

Jack: Goal number three: Mohamed Salah for Liverpool v Arsenal. A dazzling solo run and finish by the Egyptian. 

Rich: Right, OK. Those are our three options. Did you see them? Which do you think was the best? Let us know your choice and if you agree with our other weekly awards in our comments section on the Premier Skills English website.

Matchweek Prediction 

Jack: Every week, Rich predicts the result of one Premier League match and we want you to make your prediction, too.

Rich: And I did very well last week, didn’t I?

Jack: Yes, you did. You predicted a 3-1 for Liverpool against Arsenal and it finished 3-1 to Liverpool. Well done!

Rich: Did you enjoy it?

Jack: No, I didn’t enjoy your prediction and I didn’t enjoy the result!

Rich: Ah, well! Arsenal can still have a good season.

Jack: What’s your prediction this week, Rich?

Rich: Matchweek four’s big match is a huge North London Derby between Arsenal and Tottenham. Now, Spurs have had the better of things in recent years with finishing in the top four and reaching the Champions League final and it’s not something that Arsenal fans like to see. Arsenal have had a decent start to the season despite losing at Anfield last week while Tottenham have been picking up points despite not being at their best. Arsenal are strong at home and I fancy them to win this one. Aubameyang could be the hero. Final score: Arsenal 3-1 Tottenham

Jack: I’ll go with that! You can make your predictions on the Premier Skills English website in the comments section and talk about the big match at the same time!

Rich: We also have some questions for you to answer on the site that give you a chance to use this week’s vocabulary.

Jack: Right, that’s all we have time for. I hope you have enjoyed this football round-up. Join the discussion at the bottom of the page on the Premier Skills English website. 

Rich: If you listen to us on Apple Podcasts, don’t forget to leave us a review. We’d love to hear from you.

Jack: Bye for now and enjoy your football.