Matchweek 9: The back post

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: Let’s start our round-up of Matchweek nine with our headlines.

Headlines

Jack: United hold Reds after controversial Rashford opener.

Rich: Liverpool dropped their first points of the season as they drew one-all with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Marcus Rashford opened the scoring in the first half with a goal that Liverpool thought should have been disallowed for a foul. Liverpool kept attacking and United kept defending and the Reds eventually equalised. Adam Lallana got the goal with a tap-in at the back post.

Jack: City bounce back against Palace.

Rich: Manchester City got back to winning ways after a surprise defeat in Matchweek eight against Wolves. City were always on top against Palace and could have scored more. Gabriel Jesus got the first with a header and David Silva scored a brilliant second. Raheem Sterling chipped the ball over a defender and as the ball came over his shoulder, Silva hit a great volley into the net.

Jack: VAR confusion at Tottenham.

Rich: Watford were denied a first win of the season after a late Dele Alli equaliser for Spurs. Watford looked like they were going to hold out for a first win but Dele Alli scored in the 86th minute. The goal was checked for a handball but was awarded by the referee following consultation with VAR. The big screen in the stadium then said the decision was no goal. There was more discussion and some confusion before the goal was allowed to stand.

Jack: Yes, that was a bit confusing but the right decision was made in the end.

Rich: Yes, I think so. In matchweek nine there were also good wins for Leicester City, Everton, Chelsea and Aston Villa who got a 95th-minute winner.

Vocabulary alert!

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

Jack: We have some useful words and phrases this week. Our six words and phrases are: a tap-in, the back post, to be on top, to chip, to hold out and to stand.

Rich: Let’s start with the phrases we used to talk about the Manchester United - Liverpool match. We said that Adam Lallana scored a tap-in at the back post.

Jack: Well a tap-in is used to describe a really easy goal. A goal that is scored from very close to the goal and usually into an empty net.

Rich: A tap-in is always scored with the foot, not the head. It can also be used as a verb. He tapped the ball in but is much more common in football as a noun. 

Jack: Lallana scored his tap-in at the back post. The back post is the post that is furthest away from the player crossing the ball. We say the back post or more informally the back stick. The other post is the front post.

Rich: Our next two phrases come from the Crystal Palace - Manchester City match. The first phrase is to be on top. This means to be in control of the match. City were always on top in their match against Palace.

Jack: The second word we want to look at from this match is to chip or a chip as it can be a verb or a noun. We said Raheem Sterling chipped the ball over a defender.

Rich: You chip the ball when you put your foot under the ball to make it go high in the air and then back down again quickly.

Jack: Yes, it was a great chip to set up that goal for David Silva.

Rich: Our final two phrases come from the Tottenham-Watford match. The first is a phrasal verb. It’s to hold out. We said it looked like Watford were going to hold out for a win.

Jack: To hold out means to survive in a difficult situation. Spurs were attacking a lot and Watford were defending but it looked like Watford were going to survive or hold out to the end of the match and win.

Rich: Our final phrase this week is to stand and it is being used a lot now we have VAR in the Premier League. We said Tottenham’s goal was allowed to stand.

Jack: If a goal stands it means it is a valid or a legitimate goal so is permitted by the referee or VAR. If VAR decides that a goal shouldn’t stand then the referee doesn’t award a goal.

Rich: We’re still getting used to VAR and the language we use to describe it.

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:  a tap-in, the back post, to be on top, to chip, to hold out and to stand.

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. Jack Grealish was brilliant for Aston Villa and both keepers were brilliant in the Palace - City match.

Jack: But our Player of the week is the Watford’s Abdoulaye Doucoure. The midfielder won some amazing tackles, scored a goal and was very unlucky not to be celebrating the Hornet’s first win of the season.

Rich: Team of the week is a difficult one. There were no big wins this week. Everton got a good win but we’re going to go with Aston Villa. A 95th-minute winner and Villa are up to 11th after a difficult start to the season.

Jack: 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.

Rich: Goal number one: David Silva for Manchester City against Crystal Palace. A wonderful chip from Raheem Sterling and a marvellous volley from Silva.

Jack: Goal number two: Marcos Alonso for Chelsea versus Newcastle. Alonso’s powerful strike gave Chelsea all three points and they are up to fourth place.

Rich: Goal number three: Bernard for Everton v West Ham. We could have chosen either Everton goal in this match but we have gone for The Brazilian’s brilliant individual effort.

Rich: 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. You made an awful prediction last week. What was it? Liverpool would win 3-0 at Old Trafford and it would be Liverpool’s easiest win of the season?

Rich: Mmm, it was pretty wide of the mark, wasn’t it?

Jack: So, what’s your prediction this week?

Rich: Matchweek 10 sees a re-run of last season’s Champions League Final. It’s Liverpool against Tottenham. I know I predicted a big win for Liverpool last week and got it horribly wrong but I think there will be a reaction and I’m going to predict a big win again. Spurs are not playing well at the moment and it would be a big surprise if they got anything at Anfield. Final score: Liverpool 3-1 Tottenham.

Jack: 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: Remember we also have some questions for you to answer 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.