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Football Shout-out: The Opposition

Football Shout-out: The Opposition

Welcome to Football Shout-out from Premier Skills English, where we talk about the language you need when watching a match. Whether you are a super fan or an armchair supporter you won't be able to avoid football on TV this summer. In Football Shout-out, Jack and Rich present useful language to shout at the TV screen when watching a match with or without friends! In this episode, they look at some words and phrases to talk about the other team (the opposition). 

Transcript

If the listening was a bit difficult, you can listen and read the transcript at the same time.
Read the transcript and listen at the same time.

Jack: Hello and welcome to Premier Skills English - Football Shout-out 

Rich: Football shout-out is the series that teaches you the language you need when you’re watching the game.

Jack: Hi everybody my name’s Jack 

Rich: and my name’s Rich and welcome to lesson three of Football Shout-out where we talk about the English you need when you’re watching football.

Jack: If you listened to our last lesson, you will remember this:

Rich: Referee! That’s gotta be a pen! It’s a definite penalty!

Jack: A penalty? He never touched him! That’s a dive!

Rich: What’s the ref doing?

Jack: It’s going to VAR. Now we’ll see.

Rich: He’s gotta to go! That’s gotta be a red. You can’t fly into a tackle like that. Studs up two-footed … horrible

Jack: What are you talking about? He got the ball. It was a fifty-fifty challenge - hard but fair! He went down way too easily!

Rich: What’s the ref given? It’s a penalty! Get in!

Jack: Our last lesson was all about the language of fouls and what fans say when a player is fouled. If you haven’t heard the lesson, there is a link on the side of this page for you to go back and listen and learn lots of fan language connected to fouls.

Rich: This lesson, though, is all about … say it quietly … the other side.

Jack: What? Speak up a bit!

Rich: The other side … the opposition.

Jack: Ahh! The opposition.

Rich: Yes, that’s right. Fans always speak about the other team before and during a game, and as always, what you say depends on who you are playing.

Jack: Listen to this.

Rich: We’re going to beat this lot today. They’re just going to park the bus. Play with eleven behind the ball.

Jack: I’m not so sure. They’re pretty solid at the back and quick on the counter-attack. Lots of people have been saying they could go quite far in the tournament. They’re a bit of a dark horse.

Rich: Nah! It’ll be attack against defence, like a training match. They play nice football but there’s no end product.

Jack: Mmm .. I hope you’re right, but we need to keep an eye on their number nine. He’s pretty quick.

Rich: Mmm … he’s alright but they haven’t got anyone else. We should turn them over easily.

Jack: We’ll see.

Rich: Talking about the opposition can be tricky. We usually don’t use team name’s we say ‘we’, ‘us’ and ‘our’ when talking about the team we support and ‘they’ ‘them’ and ‘their’ when talking about the opposition.

Jack: In the conversation, you heard they’re solid at the back and we need to keep an eye on their number nine.

Rich: I also referred to the other team as this lot. I said we’re going to beat this lot today. This is probably a sign of being overconfident and the other team is not very important.

Jack: Rich shows this overconfidence when he uses ‘just’. He says the other team are going to just park the bus. They are not going to do anything else.

Rich: Being confident or nervous about winning the match is definitely an important factor when speaking about the opposition.

Jack: In the conversation, I’m worried about the opposition, but Rich is confident about winning.

Rich: Jack says good things about the other team because he’s worried. He says they’re solid at the back which means they are good in defence and we have to keep an eye on their number nine which means our team has to watch the other team’s number nine carefully because he’s a good player.

Jack: Rich says thing like they will just park the bus which means the other team will only defend. He also says they play nice football, but there is no end product. This means that they pass the ball well in the middle of the park but can’t score goals.

Rich: I also said that their number nine is OK, but they haven’t got anyone else. This phrase - they haven’t got anyone else means I think that the other team haven’t got any other good players. 

Jack: It’s very common to hear people saying they haven’t got anyone in attack or in midfield. Of course, they do, but it means that you don’t think they have any good players in that area of the pitch.

Rich: We’ll look at these phrases and a few more in the lesson which you can find below this podcast.

Rich: Listen again. Do you understand everything now?

Rich: We’re going to beat this lot today. They’re just going to park the bus. Play with eleven behind the ball.

Jack: I’m not so sure. They’re pretty solid at the back and quick on the counter-attack. Lots of people have been saying they could go quite far in the tournament. They’re a bit of a dark horse.

Rich: Nah! It’ll be attack against defence, like a training match. They play nice football but there’s no end product.

Jack: Mmm .. I hope you’re right, but we need to keep an eye on their number nine. He’s pretty quick.

Rich: Mmm … he’s alright but they haven’t got anyone else. We should turn them over easily.

Jack: We’ll see.

Jack: So, that’s how you talk about the opposition in English. 

Rich: We’ve got some activities to help you remember the phrases that we’ve been speaking about in the lesson below this podcast.

Jack: We’ll be back soon with our next football English lesson, which will be about what we shout at our players and manager when watching a match.

Rich: Bye for now and enjoy your football.

Pronouns

The language you need to talk about the opposition

The first thing to remember is that when we are talking about the opposition while watching a game we rarely use the team names. Look at these examples from the listening:

We should turn them over easily.

They're pretty solid at the back.

We need to keep an eye on their number nine.

We're going to beat this lot today.

When we are talking about a match we use pronouns. When we talk about our team we use 'we', 'us' and 'our', but when we talk about the other team we use 'they', 'them' and 'our'. It's definitely 'us against them' when it comes to talking about the opposition. One other phrase you can see above is 'this lot' which means 'the opposition' and is used in an informal way.

Language

Words and phrases

In the listening, Rich and Jack said that one important factor is whether you are confident or not about winning a match. The split the language into two categories:

  1. Confident about winning
  2. Worried about losing

Confident about winning

When you are confident about winning a match, you will probably use words and expressions that show this. Rich used these examples:

They're just going to park the bus.

They play nice football but there's no end product.

He's alright but they haven't got anyone else.

These expressions show that Rich is confident because he doesn't think the opposition is very good. To park the bus means to defend a lot and not attack, no end product means they can't score goals or create chances and haven't got anyone else is an expression we use to say the opposition has one good player but no more. Look at the sentences below can you fill in the gaps?

What other phrases did you hear that describe the opposition when you're confident about winning?

Opposition captains shake hands before a match.

Worried about losing

When you are worried about losing a match, you will probably use words and expressions that show this. Jack used these examples:

They're pretty solid at the back and quick on the counter-attack.

Some people have said they could go quite far. They're a bit of a dark horse.

We need to keep an eye on their number nine.

These expressions show that Jack is worried about the opposition. In the first example, he talks about the opposition's quality 'solid at the back' means good in defence while 'quick on the counter-attack' emphasises that the opposition can move quickly from defensive to attacking positions. In the second example, he talks about what other people have been saying, 'to be a dark horse' is an idiom to describe a team that is better than what people think and could surprise a lot of people. Finally, Jack talks about an individual player. He says 'we need to keep an eye on their number nine; this means to watch this player carefully because he's good.

Did you hear any similar examples? Can you think of more? Write your answers in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

It's traditional for the opposition to give a guard of honour to the team that has just won the Premier League.

Task

The Opposition

Do you understand all of the phrases below? Choose two or three of the phrases and write a mini-dialogue. Remember to use the right pronouns in your dialogues!

  1. Park the bus.
  2. A dark horse.
  3. No end product.
  4. Solid at the back.
  5. They haven't got anyone in ...

Write your answers in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

Quiz

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What do you think?

  • Were any of these phrases new for you?
  • Are you normally confident or worried at the start of a match?
  • Can you tell us any other phrases connected to the opposition?

Write your answers in the comments section below and don't forget to write your answers to the task above.

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Comments

Valentina Calderon
04/08/2018
CO
881
points

All these phrases are new to me.
Yes, I do.
I don't know more.


Valentina Calderon
04/08/2018 01:34
Colombia
Manchester City
881

All these phrases are new to me.
Yes, I do.
I don't know more.

Luisafernandabolaños
04/08/2018
CO
622
points

-If some sentences were new to me like this: the other team is going to park the bus.
-If a lot since one is excited and scared at the same time, but still You want to give your best to be able to beat the opposing team.
-This phrase: they are good but not as good as our team.


Luisafernandabolaños
04/08/2018 00:19
Colombia
Manchester United
622

-If some sentences were new to me like this: the other team is going to park the bus.
-If a lot since one is excited and scared at the same time, but still You want to give your best to be able to beat the opposing team.
-This phrase: they are good but not as good as our team.

Camila116
04/08/2018
CO
602
points

*They haven't got anyone in up front.
*Normally yes, very much.
*They will be gone before they arrive!


Camila116
04/08/2018 00:15
Colombia
Manchester United
602

*They haven't got anyone in up front.
*Normally yes, very much.
*They will be gone before they arrive!

Julián Ernesto Castro Renza's picture
Julián Ernesto ...
04/08/2018
CO
761
points

Just a few.
I would say nervous.


Julián Ernesto Castro Renza's picture
Julián Ernesto ...
04/08/2018 00:01
Colombia
Chelsea
761

Just a few.
I would say nervous.

Miguel07garcia
03/08/2018
CO
571
points

Good test


Miguel07garcia
03/08/2018 23:34
Colombia
Arsenal
571

Good test

keren jemima torres's picture
keren jemima torres
03/08/2018
CO
-890
points

some words are new but the test is very good


keren jemima torres's picture
keren jemima torres
03/08/2018 21:11
Colombia
Manchester United
-890

some words are new but the test is very good

Juanita190
03/08/2018
CO
523
points

most of the sentences were new to me, totally worried


Juanita190
03/08/2018 18:59
Colombia
Manchester United
523

most of the sentences were new to me, totally worried

Sierra22
03/08/2018
CO
302
points

Good


Sierra22
03/08/2018 05:17
Colombia
Manchester City
302

Good

MajoCh
03/08/2018
CO
833
points

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team


MajoCh
03/08/2018 04:26
Colombia
Arsenal
833

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team

SophCastroA
03/08/2018
CO
693
points

+All of this phrases are new for me, was great to learned new vocabulary.

+At the start of a match, I'm normally confident that my team will win.

+Sorry, I don't know another phrases.


SophCastroA
03/08/2018 01:50
Colombia
Wolverhampton Wanderers
693

+All of this phrases are new for me, was great to learned new vocabulary.

+At the start of a match, I'm normally confident that my team will win.

+Sorry, I don't know another phrases.

ValentinaBasto
03/08/2018
CO
627
points

Several of these phrases were new to me.
I would say it depends on the teams that are playing and what I like.


ValentinaBasto
03/08/2018 01:29
Colombia
Leicester City
627

Several of these phrases were new to me.
I would say it depends on the teams that are playing and what I like.

Germanreyesl1
02/08/2018
CO
896
points

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team


Germanreyesl1
02/08/2018 23:42
Colombia
Manchester United
896

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team

JuanDavidSilvaMuñoz
02/08/2018
CO
709
points

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases


JuanDavidSilvaMuñoz
02/08/2018 23:41
Colombia
Manchester United
709

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases

SofiaBautistaQ
01/08/2018
CO
754
points

Most of them are new.
It depends on which team is normally I only worry about the selection of COLOMBIA.


SofiaBautistaQ
01/08/2018 02:35
Colombia
Arsenal
754

Most of them are new.
It depends on which team is normally I only worry about the selection of COLOMBIA.

Santy_14
01/08/2018
CO
520
points

Good test


Santy_14
01/08/2018 02:16
Colombia
Chelsea
520

Good test

danabrigitte's picture
danabrigitte
01/08/2018
CO
707
points

There were a few words new for me


danabrigitte's picture
danabrigitte
01/08/2018 01:39
Colombia
Manchester United
707

There were a few words new for me

Juanestebanbermeo
31/07/2018
CO
781
points

There were a few words new for me


Juanestebanbermeo
31/07/2018 07:19
Colombia
Manchester United
781

There were a few words new for me

Germanreyesl1
31/07/2018
CO
896
points

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases


Germanreyesl1
31/07/2018 05:23
Colombia
Manchester United
896

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases

Danna Bolaños
31/07/2018
CO
795
points

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team


Danna Bolaños
31/07/2018 02:49
Colombia
Liverpool
795

All these phrases are new to me
Normally I'm nervous at the beginning of a game as I always try to hit the scoreboard also supported my team

OscarOrozcoVargas
31/07/2018
CO
595
points

I solved easily.


OscarOrozcoVargas
31/07/2018 01:44
Colombia
Arsenal
595

I solved easily.

Santiespinosa2901
31/07/2018
CO
889
points

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases.


Santiespinosa2901
31/07/2018 00:56
Colombia
Chelsea
889

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases.

diegohurtadoh's picture
diegohurtadoh
30/07/2018
CO
796
points

Yes, many of these phrases are new to me.
Task:
Not being very familiar with these phrases is difficult to get to develop a dialogue.


diegohurtadoh's picture
diegohurtadoh
30/07/2018 23:02
Colombia
Chelsea
796

Yes, many of these phrases are new to me.
Task:
Not being very familiar with these phrases is difficult to get to develop a dialogue.

ValentinaBasto
03/08/2018
CO
627
points

Interesting...


ValentinaBasto
03/08/2018 01:30
Colombia
Leicester City
627

Interesting...

LuciaMartinezBañol
30/07/2018
CO
864
points

Yes, many of these phrases are new to me.
Task:
Not being very familiar with these phrases is difficult to get to develop a dialogue.


LuciaMartinezBañol
30/07/2018 04:38
Colombia
Manchester United
864

Yes, many of these phrases are new to me.
Task:
Not being very familiar with these phrases is difficult to get to develop a dialogue.

JuanDavidA9
30/07/2018
CO
660
points

All of these phrases are new for me


JuanDavidA9
30/07/2018 01:27
Colombia
Chelsea
660

All of these phrases are new for me

AnaVictoriaMorales
30/07/2018
CO
533
points

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases


AnaVictoriaMorales
30/07/2018 01:10
Colombia
Chelsea
533

Most phrases are new to me and of course, we all get nervous before a game. I do not know more phrases

AmadaMorale
30/07/2018
CO
36
points

Most of these phrases were new to me.


AmadaMorale
30/07/2018 01:09
Colombia
Manchester United
36

Most of these phrases were new to me.

Ivanandrescaballero
29/07/2018
CO
924
points

it's great


Ivanandrescaballero
29/07/2018 20:56
Colombia
Manchester United
924

it's great

nataliahurtado
29/07/2018
CO
756
points

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not


nataliahurtado
29/07/2018 20:17
Colombia
Manchester United
756

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not

AndreaJuliana
29/07/2018
CO
246
points

If I understand the phrases I love to learn


AndreaJuliana
29/07/2018 16:05
Colombia
Manchester United
246

If I understand the phrases I love to learn

JpAn
29/07/2018
CO
774
points

If these phrases are new to me, i'm usually not sure when to start a game.


JpAn
29/07/2018 00:54
Colombia
Arsenal
774

If these phrases are new to me, i'm usually not sure when to start a game.

juliana embus's picture
juliana embus
28/07/2018
CO
-729
points

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not


juliana embus's picture
juliana embus
28/07/2018 22:50
Colombia
Chelsea
-729

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not

Luanaolave's picture
Luanaolave
28/07/2018
CO
866
points

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not


Luanaolave's picture
Luanaolave
28/07/2018 04:31
Colombia
Manchester United
866

There are many new phrases that I have never heard in my life.
whenever there is a match and my selection plays I am very anxious to know if we are going to win or not

Juanesbermeo
27/07/2018
CO
598
points

I have learned a lot in this lesson


Juanesbermeo
27/07/2018 06:27
Colombia
Arsenal
598

I have learned a lot in this lesson

Valeria_coy's picture
Valeria_coy
26/07/2018
CO
742
points

The most part of the phrases are new for me, when a match start I am a normally confident


Valeria_coy's picture
Valeria_coy
26/07/2018 01:10
Colombia
Chelsea
742

The most part of the phrases are new for me, when a match start I am a normally confident

Karencollazos
24/07/2018
CO
759
points

Yes, all of this phrases are new for me, i am always worried at the start of a match,


Karencollazos
24/07/2018 03:00
Colombia
Manchester City
759

Yes, all of this phrases are new for me, i am always worried at the start of a match,

AndrewHernandez's picture
AndrewHernandez
24/07/2018
CO
-569
points

thanks for the new questions I learned.


AndrewHernandez's picture
AndrewHernandez
24/07/2018 01:09
Colombia
Manchester City
-569

thanks for the new questions I learned.

danielar
23/07/2018
CO
678
points

Yes, most of the prayers are new to me. At the beginning of a game, I'm pretty sure.


danielar
23/07/2018 20:17
Colombia
Tottenham Hotspur
678

Yes, most of the prayers are new to me. At the beginning of a game, I'm pretty sure.

lauraamayav
22/07/2018
CO
921
points

These phrases were new to me. Normally I'm sure. I do not know other phrases.


lauraamayav
22/07/2018 05:52
Colombia
Arsenal
921

These phrases were new to me. Normally I'm sure. I do not know other phrases.

AngelDa.35's picture
AngelDa.35
22/07/2018
CO
722
points

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.


AngelDa.35's picture
AngelDa.35
22/07/2018 00:08
Colombia
Manchester United
722

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.

MariaJoseCorreaC
20/07/2018
CO
568
points

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.


MariaJoseCorreaC
20/07/2018 17:05
Colombia
Manchester United
568

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.

MariaJoseCorreaC
20/07/2018
CO
568
points

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.


MariaJoseCorreaC
20/07/2018 17:03
Colombia
Manchester United
568

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.

Juanmarcorrea10
20/07/2018
CO
759
points

they are all excelents phrases and some are newa for me


Juanmarcorrea10
20/07/2018 16:54
Colombia
Manchester United
759

they are all excelents phrases and some are newa for me

Juanmarcorrea10
20/07/2018
CO
759
points

this are the best phrases and some are new for me


Juanmarcorrea10
20/07/2018 16:52
Colombia
Manchester United
759

this are the best phrases and some are new for me

juancamilojimenezch
20/07/2018
CO
664
points

They are the best phrases.


juancamilojimenezch
20/07/2018 00:27
Colombia
Manchester City
664

They are the best phrases.

sayase's picture
sayase
19/07/2018
CO
687
points

Yes, I never heard about this topic.


sayase's picture
sayase
19/07/2018 01:28
Colombia
Manchester United
687

Yes, I never heard about this topic.

isabella13.it's picture
isabella13.it
19/07/2018
CO
822
points

The most of the phrases were new for me.


isabella13.it's picture
isabella13.it
19/07/2018 01:18
Colombia
Arsenal
822

The most of the phrases were new for me.

ValentinaCalderónC
18/07/2018
CO
875
points

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.


ValentinaCalderónC
18/07/2018 21:13
Colombia
Crystal Palace
875

Yes, most of the sentences are new to me. At the beginning of a game I am fairly calm and confident.

LauraDanielaAriza
18/07/2018
CO
817
points

Most of the sentences were new to me, but different from those mentioned in the post I do not know any other phrase.


LauraDanielaAriza
18/07/2018 17:03
Colombia
Manchester United
817

Most of the sentences were new to me, but different from those mentioned in the post I do not know any other phrase.

Sebastian Triviño Medina's picture
Sebastian Trivi...
17/07/2018
CO
995
points

They are the best phrases


Sebastian Triviño Medina's picture
Sebastian Trivi...
17/07/2018 23:49
Colombia
Manchester United
995

They are the best phrases

Leaderboard

Top Scorers
RankNameScore
1mobeckham6510
2Alex_from_Ukraine6278
3hsn5525
4wsanta5086
5kwesimanifest4768
6Liubomyr4408
7elghoul3988
8assemjuve3705
9aragorn19863557
10Gergő Nagy3396
Country ranking
RankNameScore
1Colombia71478
2Ukraine33300
3Spain28277
4Serbia27289
5Brazil23896
6Albania20578
7Vietnam19939
8Turkey19810
9Macedonia19074
10Bosnia and Herzegovina16333
Club ranking
RankNameScore
1Manchester United141846
2Liverpool110282
3Chelsea88559
4Arsenal85678
5Manchester City56951
6Tottenham Hotspur19169
7Newcastle United10457
8West Ham United7454
9AFC Bournemouth4454
10Crystal Palace4240

Level

3
Average: 3 (1 vote)

Goals

  • Skills: Listening
  • Language: Words and phrases to talk about the opposition