Matchweek 5: Underdogs
Matchweek 5: Underdogs
Welcome to This Week from Premier Skills English, a weekly review of football action for learners of English from across the globe. In This Week, Jack and Rich talk about the latest action from the Premier League and have lots of football English for you to learn.
Transcript
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: We’re back after the international break so let’s start by looking at the headlines from Matchweek five.
Headlines
Jack: Canaries flying high against City.
Rich: Norwich City created the biggest Premier League upset of the season as they beat Manchester City 3-2. The underdogs stormed into a 2-0 lead through Kenny Mclean and Todd Cantwell. The Premier League Champions pulled one back through Sergio Aguero before half time but there was no comeback and the underdogs extended their lead when Teemu Pukki got his sixth of the season. Rodri got a consolation for City but it was not enough and the CHampions were beaten for the first time in nine months.
Jack: Liverpool come from behind to go clear at the top.
Rich: Liverpool are five points ahead at the top of the Premier League table after a come from behind win against Newcastle. The Magpies took an early lead against the run of play but a brace from Sadio Mane and one from Mohamed Salah turned the match around. Liverpool have now won 14 Premier League matches in a row.
Jack: Abraham pulls Wolves apart.
Rich: Tammy Abraham got his first Premier League hat-trick as Chelsea got a stunning 5-2 win away at Wolves. Abraham is the Premier League’s joint-top scorer with seven goals this season and Chelsea were 4-0 up before the hour mark. Wolves are still looking for their first Premier League win of the season.
Jack: Some great matches last weekend. There was also a big 4-0 win for Spurs and wins for Bournemouth, Southampton and Manchester United.
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: upset, underdog, against the run of play, a brace, a hat-trick, and joint-top scorer.
Rich: Let’s start with the two we used about Norwich CIty’s surprise win against Manchester City. We didn’t just describe it as a surprise we said it was the biggest upset of the season. An upset is a shock result; when a smaller team beats a bigger team.
Jack: It can be used as a verb too. We can say Norwich upset Manchester City. I’m sure the City fans were upset.
Rich: Very good - upset can also be an adjective that means sad.
Jack: We described Norwich as the underdogs. The underdog is the participant or team that are not the favourites to win because they are not usually as good or successful.
Rich: But sometimes the underdogs do win as Norwich showed everyone at the weekend.
Jack: We used a couple of interesting phrases when speaking about the Liverpool-Newcastle match. The first was against the run of play.
Rich: We said Newcastle scored against the run of play. We use this phrase when one team scores even though the other team is attacking more and playing much better.
Jack: Liverpool were playing better than Newcastle but Newcastle scored against the run of play.
Rich: Sadio Mane scored a brace against Newcastle. A brace?
Jack: Yeah, it’s a strange word. It’s used quite a lot in football and it means a pair of goals or two goals in one match. We don’t say a pair of goals, we say a brace of goals and we usually drop the word ‘pair’ and just say ‘a brace’.
Rich: A much more common word is if you score three goals in a match. The word is ‘hat-trick’ and Tammy Abraham scored a hat-trick for Chelsea against Wolves last weekend.
Jack: And the final word this week is joint-top scorer or just joint-top. If you are joint-top it means you are equal top, you are in equal first place.
Rich: So, Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham is joint-top scorer with Sergio Aguero. We also hear the phrase when two teams have the same amount of points in first and second place in the league.
Jack: For example, you could say Liverpool and Manchester City are joint-top.
Rich: No, you can’t Liverpool are top and City are five points behind.
Jack: Yes, I know. It was just an example and don’t get too excited we’ve only played five games.
Rich: 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.
Jack: The words and phrases are: upset, underdog, against the run of play, a brace, a hat-trick, and joint-top scorer.
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. The whole Norwich team were superb but especially Emi Buendia who got two assists. There were also good performances from Tammy Abraham who got a hat-trick and Callum Wilson who got a brace for Bournemouth.
Jack: But our Player of the Week is Tottenham’s Son Heung-Min. The South Korean was superb for Spurs and was another player to get a brace last weekend.
Rich: The next award is for Team of the Week. There were great wins for Spurs and Chelsea last weekend but there is only one team that is going to win this award this week.
Jack: Yes, it’s Norwich City. The Canaries became the first team to beat Manchester City since January. A fantastic result.
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: Son Heung Min for Tottenham against Crystal Palace. A wonderful first-time finish for his second goal.
Rich: Goal number two: Moussa Djenepo for Southampton v Sheffield United. The Malian midfielder went past three defenders like they weren’t there to win all three points for the Saints.
Jack: Goal number three: Pierre Emerick Aubameyang for Arsenal versus Watford. Aubamyang finished off a stunning team goal to put the Gunners 2-0 up although it wasn’t enough for all three points in the end.
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: I haven’t been doing very well lately.
Jack: No, I think you went for a Wolves win last week and Chelsea won 5-2! You’re looking at another Chelsea match this week.
Rich: That’s right. The big match in MAtchweek six is at Stamford Bridge where Chelsea are at home to Liverpool. Chelsea’s start has been up and down and they haven’t won a home match yet this season. Liverpool, of course, are on fire and are top of the table and have won their last 14 Premier League matches. Both play in the Champions League this week but Liverpool have a tough trip to Napoli while Chelsea are at home to Valencia. I have a feeling that Chelsea may end Liverpool’s winning run but they won’t get all three points. Final score: Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool.
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 that 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.
Results
Matchweek 5:
Wolves 2-5 Chelsea
Watford 2-2 Arsenal
Bournemouth 3-1 Everton
Tottenham 4-0 Crystal Palace
Sheffield United 0-1 Southampton
Norwich 3-2 Manchester City
Manchester United 1-0 Leicester City
Brighton 1-1 Burnley
Liverpool 3-1 Newcastle United
Aston Villa L-L West Ham United
Headlines
Canaries flying high against City
Norwich City created the biggest Premier League upset of the season as they beat Manchester City 3-2. The underdogs stormed into a 2-0 lead through Kenny Mclean and Todd Cantwell. The Premier League Champions pulled one back through Sergio Aguero before half time but there was no comeback and the underdogs extended their lead when Teemu Pukki got his sixth of the season. Rodri got a consolation for City but it was not enough and the Champions were beaten for the first time in nine months.
Headlines
Liverpool come from behind to go clear at the top
Liverpool are five points ahead at the top of the Premier League table after a come from behind win against Newcastle. The Magpies took an early lead against the run of play but a brace from Sadio Mane and one from Mohamed Salah turned the match around. Liverpool have now won 14 Premier League matches in a row.
Headlines
Abraham pulls Wolves apart
Tammy Abraham got his first Premier League hat-trick as Chelsea got a stunning 5-2 win away at Wolves. Abraham is the Premier League’s joint-top scorer with seven goals this season and Chelsea were 4-0 up before the hour mark. Wolves are still looking for their first Premier League win of the season.
Vocabulary Alert
Football English
We looked at six pieces of football English that you can learn to improve your English. Take a look at the phrases in bold. Do you understand what they mean?
Norwich City created the biggest Premier League upset of the season as they beat Manchester City 3-2. An upset is a shock result; when a smaller team beats a bigger team.
The underdogs stormed into a 2-0 lead through Kenny Mclean and Todd Cantwell. The underdog is the participant or team that are not the favourites to win because they are not usually as good or successful.
The Magpies took an early lead against the run of play. We use this phrase when one team scores even though the other team is attacking more and playing much better.
A brace from Sadio Mane and a goal from Mohamed Salah turned the match around. A brace means a pair of goals - two goals in one match.
Tammy Abraham got his first Premier League hat-trick. A hat-trick is three goals in one match.
Abraham is the Premier League’s joint-top scorer with seven goals this season. If you are joint-top it means you are equal top, you are in equal first place.
Can you use the words in bold in a different sentence? Write a sentence at the bottom of the page. If you're not sure, listen to the audio for more explanations and examples.
Matchweek Awards
Do you agree with our choices?
Player of the Week: Son Heung-Min (Tottenham Hotspur)
Team of the Week: Norwich City
Goal of the Week: Look at the three options from Matchweek 5 and let us know which goal was best in the comments section!
Goal 1
Son Heung Min for Tottenham against Crystal Palace.
Goal 2
Moussa Djenepo for Southampton v Sheffield United.
Goal 3
Pierre Emerick Aubameyang for Arsenal versus Watford.
The Big Match
Chelsea v Liverpool
The big match this weekend is Chelsea against Liverpool. Rich thinks Liverpool will drop some points for the first time this season. Do you agree?
What are your predictions? Have a listen to what Rich says and then make your prediction and talk about any of this weekend's matches below.
Football Chat
What do you think?
Jack and Rich have spoken about Matchweek 5 in the Premier League. Now it's your turn! Have a look at the questions and write your answers in the comments section below.
- Rich and Jack chose Tottenham's Son Heung-Min as Player of the Week. Do you agree?
- Jack and Rich selected Norwich City as their Team of the Week. Do you agree?
- Rich and Jack picked three goals for the Goal of the Week award? Did you see them? Which do you think was best?
- Use this week's vocabulary: Was Norwich City's win against Manchester City a big upset? Do you like it when the underdogs beat the bigger teams?
- Can you use 'a brace' or 'a hat-trick' in a sentence about last weekend's football?
Don't forget to make your prediction for this week's Big Match!
Let's get the conversation started and create a community!
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Comments
14/01/2022
points
Phrases
• The police pull some demonstrators apart and took them to the police station.
• Champion pulled all her competitors apart.
• They were need one point and assured it by scoring against the run of play.
• Serena Williams become joint-top tennis player with her sister Venus in the Wimbledon Championships this year.
14/01/2022 17:17
Tottenham Hotspur
5555
Phrases
• The police pull some demonstrators apart and took them to the police station.
• Champion pulled all her competitors apart.
• They were need one point and assured it by scoring against the run of play.
• Serena Williams become joint-top tennis player with her sister Venus in the Wimbledon Championships this year.
14/01/2022
points
Three teammates are trying to make a half-volley at the corner-kick. Unfortunately football is played with one ball-:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bs6qHz5pwY&ab_channel=Taka61Net
14/01/2022 14:57
Tottenham Hotspur
5555
Three teammates are trying to make a half-volley at the corner-kick. Unfortunately football is played with one ball-:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bs6qHz5pwY&ab_channel=Taka61Net
23/09/2019
points
1- I didn't watched all games so I can't indicate the player of the week
2- Yes I think Norwich is absolutely the Team of the Week.
3- Unfortunately I havn't seen any of that three goal
23/09/2019 09:26
Liverpool
159
1- I didn't watched all games so I can't indicate the player of the week
2- Yes I think Norwich is absolutely the Team of the Week.
3- Unfortunately I havn't seen any of that three goal
23/09/2019
points
Hi Kurlash,
Welcome to Premier Skills English. We hope you enjoy our website.
Is that you in the photo or a famous person?
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
23/09/2019 11:35
Liverpool
594
Hi Kurlash,
Welcome to Premier Skills English. We hope you enjoy our website.
Is that you in the photo or a famous person?
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
24/09/2019
points
Hi Rich,
I'm happy to be here, and I hope to improve my english.
Yes, it's me in the picture, really not me but my own reproduction. :-)
24/09/2019 08:22
Liverpool
159
Hi Rich,
I'm happy to be here, and I hope to improve my english.
Yes, it's me in the picture, really not me but my own reproduction. :-)
21/09/2019
points
1- I agree with your choices and I think that Pierre Emerick Aubameyang's goal for Arsenal versus Watford was the best.
2- I predict a 2-2 draw match for this week game between Chelsea Vs Liverpool.
21/09/2019 14:29
Liverpool
325
1- I agree with your choices and I think that Pierre Emerick Aubameyang's goal for Arsenal versus Watford was the best.
2- I predict a 2-2 draw match for this week game between Chelsea Vs Liverpool.
19/09/2019
points
Chelsea 2 : 2 Liverpool
19/09/2019 15:18
Liverpool
6570
Chelsea 2 : 2 Liverpool
19/09/2019
points
1-3. I agree with your choices this week. I think the Moussa Djenepo's goal was the best. But I also enjoyed Fikayo Tomori's stunning goal for Chelsea and Mohamed Salah goal for Liverpool after the amazing Firmino's assist.
4.It was a big upset and personally, I like when the underdogs win.
5. It was a wonderful matchday for Tammy Abraham. Despite of its own goal, he scored a hat-trick.
19/09/2019 11:40
Tottenham Hotspur
615
1-3. I agree with your choices this week. I think the Moussa Djenepo's goal was the best. But I also enjoyed Fikayo Tomori's stunning goal for Chelsea and Mohamed Salah goal for Liverpool after the amazing Firmino's assist.
4.It was a big upset and personally, I like when the underdogs win.
5. It was a wonderful matchday for Tammy Abraham. Despite of its own goal, he scored a hat-trick.
18/09/2019
points
1. i didn't watched all games.
2. i think they did well
18/09/2019 17:37
Manchester United
196
1. i didn't watched all games.
2. i think they did well
18/09/2019
points
1. Often scorers are also best players of the week. Why not a goal keeper, a defender or any other player who had not scored at all?
2. Yes, why not? It is not an easy task to beat City those days.
3. I saw some goals on reply. My choice would go for Abraham for his first hat trick in Premier League.
4. At home the underdog had been doing well from the beginning. Aguero helps City taking the lead but at the break Guardiola was disapointed to see his players out of run. Good decision to send at the bench both two mildfielders who where out the field in mind I mean David Silva and Gundogan but it was not enough to come back after the Norwich's three goals. Rodri pulls another one but it was not sufficient for taking any point for the first time in nine months.
5. Good luck for Abraham after his first hat-trick and the only one in this fifth match. We were happy with braces having at least two, one from Son and the other from Aubameyang.
18/09/2019 15:13
Manchester City
3988
1. Often scorers are also best players of the week. Why not a goal keeper, a defender or any other player who had not scored at all?
2. Yes, why not? It is not an easy task to beat City those days.
3. I saw some goals on reply. My choice would go for Abraham for his first hat trick in Premier League.
4. At home the underdog had been doing well from the beginning. Aguero helps City taking the lead but at the break Guardiola was disapointed to see his players out of run. Good decision to send at the bench both two mildfielders who where out the field in mind I mean David Silva and Gundogan but it was not enough to come back after the Norwich's three goals. Rodri pulls another one but it was not sufficient for taking any point for the first time in nine months.
5. Good luck for Abraham after his first hat-trick and the only one in this fifth match. We were happy with braces having at least two, one from Son and the other from Aubameyang.
17/09/2019
points
I agree on Team of the Week. No doubt Norwich are the outright winners. We seem to differ on Player of the Week. I think Tammy Abraham deserves this week's award. Abraham scored more goals than Spurs' Son.
I am undecided on Goal of the Week.
17/09/2019 22:35
Chelsea
1749
I agree on Team of the Week. No doubt Norwich are the outright winners. We seem to differ on Player of the Week. I think Tammy Abraham deserves this week's award. Abraham scored more goals than Spurs' Son.
I am undecided on Goal of the Week.
17/09/2019
points
ok
17/09/2019 21:17
Manchester City
1734
ok
17/09/2019
points
1.Sadio Mane is my player of the week.
2.Canaries was flying high! They were my best team of the week.
3.Son,I'm excited an asian player got such a fantastic goal.
4.I like the underdogs beat the champion team.But I don't want to see upset of Liverpool....
5.I know a hat-trick but I hear 'a brace' first time.
I was happy that Mane scored a brace.
17/09/2019 15:12
Liverpool
1
1.Sadio Mane is my player of the week.
2.Canaries was flying high! They were my best team of the week.
3.Son,I'm excited an asian player got such a fantastic goal.
4.I like the underdogs beat the champion team.But I don't want to see upset of Liverpool....
5.I know a hat-trick but I hear 'a brace' first time.
I was happy that Mane scored a brace.
17/09/2019
points
Hi Kimurahimvic
We're happy that we could teach you a new word! I've just been watching Liverpool lose to the underdogs from Naples!!
I hope you enjoy our website.
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
17/09/2019 22:04
Liverpool
594
Hi Kimurahimvic
We're happy that we could teach you a new word! I've just been watching Liverpool lose to the underdogs from Naples!!
I hope you enjoy our website.
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
17/09/2019
points
Goal of the week is definitely for Son’s goal against Crystal Palace. All of his goals against Palace have been fantastic but last week’s goals were breathtaking.
Also, your pick, player of the week for Son is incontestable. :)
17/09/2019 03:42
Tottenham Hotspur
1
Goal of the week is definitely for Son’s goal against Crystal Palace. All of his goals against Palace have been fantastic but last week’s goals were breathtaking.
Also, your pick, player of the week for Son is incontestable. :)
17/09/2019
points
Son is definitely back on form after a difficult start to the season for Tottenham.
Hope you enjoy our website, Eun!
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
17/09/2019 08:23
Liverpool
594
Son is definitely back on form after a difficult start to the season for Tottenham.
Hope you enjoy our website, Eun!
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
16/09/2019
points
1. Tammy Abraham is my player of the week.
2. Yes, I agree Norwich City deserves the Team of the Week award, especially after beating the champions.
3. I think the best goal of the Week was Son Heung Min's goal for Tottenham against Crystal Palace.
4. Norwich City's win against Manchester City left Man City fans upset. The underdogs are sometimes unpredictable, I like it when they beat bigger teams.
5. Mane is on fire, he scored a brace against new castle but Tammy Abraham went to the top to join Sergio Aguero after scoring a hat-trick against the Wolves.
16/09/2019 22:48
Manchester United
28
1. Tammy Abraham is my player of the week.
2. Yes, I agree Norwich City deserves the Team of the Week award, especially after beating the champions.
3. I think the best goal of the Week was Son Heung Min's goal for Tottenham against Crystal Palace.
4. Norwich City's win against Manchester City left Man City fans upset. The underdogs are sometimes unpredictable, I like it when they beat bigger teams.
5. Mane is on fire, he scored a brace against new castle but Tammy Abraham went to the top to join Sergio Aguero after scoring a hat-trick against the Wolves.
17/09/2019
points
Good use of this week's vocabulary, Brandonm! Tammy Abraham was close to getting our Player of the Week award but we just thought that Son Heung-min's all-round game was so good last weekend.
Hope you enjoy our website!
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
17/09/2019 08:21
Liverpool
594
Good use of this week's vocabulary, Brandonm! Tammy Abraham was close to getting our Player of the Week award but we just thought that Son Heung-min's all-round game was so good last weekend.
Hope you enjoy our website!
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team