The Big Kick-Off - 16/17 ep.1
The Big Kick-Off - 16/17 ep.1
In this week's Premier Skills English podcast, Rich and Jack talk about the new Premier League season, which starts this weekend. They talk about some of the things they would like to see this season. The language focus is on some of the different ways we can use 'would like' and the pronunciation section focuses on how to pronounce 'would' in connected speech. Our Club of the Week is Arsenal and we have news about our Fantasy Football team and our first Premier League prediction of the new season.
How much did you understand?
Vocabulary
In the podcast, Rich and Jack used some words and phrases that might be new for you. You can see two examples here:
Jose Mourinho dedicated the trophy to Louis Van Gaal.
Ojo is a player to keep an eye on.
There were a few more tricky words in the podcast. Can you remember all of them? Try the activity below, then, listen to the podcast again to hear how we used the words in context. This can really help with understanding.
Swansea City have bought the Spanish international, Fernando Llorente, from Sevilla.
Language - Would like
In this week's podcast, Jack and Rich used the phrase 'would' a lot. They used three different forms of 'would'. Let's start with the simplest.
Would like + infinitive - this phrase is a more polite way of saying 'I want'.
I would like to see Bellerin turn into a world class defender.
I would like the soup and then the roast beef, please.
A conditional statement - sentences divided into two parts (often with 'if' in one part of the sentence), one part states the condition and the other part states the action that occurs if the condition is fulfilled.
It would be great if Liverpool won the Premier League.
A rhetorical question - this is a type of question that is not meant to be answered. They are usually used to make a statement.
Wouldn’t it be brilliant to see a young player who nobody knows do well?
Let's look at some more phrases that use 'would'. In this activity, try to complete the sentences with the correct word.
Manchester City have bought the German international, Leroy Sane, from Schalke.
Pronunciation - Connected Speech
In last week's podcast, we looked at something called connected speech, which is the sounds of language joined together. We looked at this area of pronunciation, again, this week. When we use the phrase 'would like' the first word 'would' is often unstressed and not pronounced fully. We see this in writing when we use contractions, for example:
I'd like to visit West Ham's new stadium. It was built for the Olympic Games in 2012.
When we say the sentence above, we don't say 'I would like to visit...', we say I'd like to visit...' You can see another example from the podcast here:
I think it would be great to see Romelu Lukaku as top scorer this season.
In the sentence above, we don't say 'it would', we say something more like 'it'd be' or 'it ud be' or in phonetics it is: /ɪtədbɪ/. In the podcast, Rich asked everybody to listen to the pronunciation section again and listen to see how many times you can hear the word 'would' being used. How many times is the full form used? How many times is the weak form or unstressed form used? Let us know in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
Andre Ayew will be playing at the Olympic Stadium for West Ham Utd this season.
Transcript
Welcome
Rich: Hello my name’s Rich and welcome to this week’s Premier Skills English podcast.
Jack: Hi everyone. I’m Jack and every week we talk about football and help you with your English.
Rich: It’s finally here Jack. After waiting nearly 3 months the new Premier League season kicks off this weekend! I can’t wait!
Jack: Yes, it’s very exciting and this week we’re going to talk all about the new season in the Premier League. As always, we’ll have some new vocabulary for you to learn and the language focus is on the phrases that mean ‘would like’.
Rich: We’ll also have our pronunciation, fantasy football and football phrase sections for you.
Jack: Yes, we will have all of that and Rich are you going to start your Premier League predictions again? I think this season, we’ll see how well you do. We’ll keep a table on the page to show everybody what a great predictor you are!
Rich: That sounds great. I can’t wait! Maybe we should both do it?
Jack: Mmmm, yes maybe.
Rich: Well done to Aragorn1986 from Montenegro who was the first to complete our third pre-season course last week. Well done to the rest of you who completed it, too. We hope that you found it useful.
Jack: If you haven’t started the course, don’t worry. Just go to the fans section at the top of the page and click on courses. You will find all the courses that are available on Premier Skills English.
Rich: We will have some more courses for you during the season, so keep an eye out for them!
Social
Rich: What’s been happening on the website this week, Jack?
Jack: We’ve got some more advanced vocabulary on the website with a page about goalkeepers and a page about defenders.
Rich: Yes, some of it’s quite difficult but I love the phrase ‘to park the bus’.
Jack: If you want to check out these pages, you will find them in pre-season course 3.
Latest News
Jack: What’s been happening in the Premier League this week, Rich?
Rich: The Premier League has been getting ready for the big kick off on Saturday.
Jack: I see Liverpool warmed up with a good result.
Rich: Yes, they beat Barcelona 4-0!! An unbelievable result.
Jack: I’m sure you could talk about it for hours. But don’t!
Rich: OK, Manchester Utd won the Community Shield. They beat Leicester 2-1. Zlatan Ibrahimovic got the winner.
Jack: A good start for Zlatan and Jose Mourinho.
Rich: Yes, he dedicated the trophy to Louis Van Gaal - the ex-Man Utd manager, which was nice.
Jack: There have been more new transfers, too.
Rich: Yes, the record for most expensive player has been broken. Manchester United have signed French midfielder Paul Pogba from Juventus for a record fee.
Jack: It’s been reported that the transfer is the most expensive in the history of football transfers. Paul Pogba used to play for Manchester United before his move to Italy.
Rich: When he got back to Manchester, he said it was like he was coming home from holiday. I think he must have missed the fine British weather.
Jack: Hmmm, yes. He was probably tired of all that sunshine and Italian food. In other transfer news, Manchester City have bought Leroy Sane from Schalke in Germany and Swansea City have bought the Spanish striker, Fernando Llorente, from Seville.
Rich: Yes, there will be more transfers after the season starts, too. The transfer deadline is not until the end of this month.
Language Focus
Jack: So, the season is about to start let’s talk a bit about what we would like to see this season.
Rich: It would be brilliant if Liverpool won the Premier League.
Jack: Well, it would be great for you and Liverpool fans. I, obviously, think it would be great if Arsenal won the Premier League. Let’s think of some things that everybody would like to see.
Rich: Everybody loves an underdog. Leicester City was an amazing story last season. Who would you like to see surprise the Premier League this season?
Jack: Middlesbrough, Burnley and Hull have just been promoted. Wouldn’t it be great if Burnley could do the same as Leicester last season?
Rich: It would be amazing but I can’t see the same thing happening again. But you never know!
Jack: Wouldn’t it be brilliant to see a young player who nobody knows do well?
Rich: Yes, it’s great to have well-known players like Ibrahimovic in the Premier League but there’s something special when a new young player does well. Maybe Manchester Utd’s Marcus Rashford will score more goals than Ibrahimovic?
Jack: That would surprise me! I know that he’s been playing in the Premier League for a few seasons now but I think it would be great to see Everton’s Romelu Lukaku as top scorer this season.
Rich: He’s still only 23. I would like to see more of Sheyi Ojo at Liverpool. I think he’s a very exciting player and he’s only 19. Ojo is a player to keep an eye on.
Jack: And I would like to see Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin turning into a world class defender. He’s already brilliant but I think he can get even better. He’s just 20 years old.
Rich: And personally, I would love to visit the Olympic Stadium which is West Ham’s new ground.
Jack: Yes, it will be a great experience for Hammers fans and the away fans, too. Anything else?
Rich: Well, it would be wonderful if there were fewer arguments between players and referees this season.
Jack: What do you mean?
Rich: You know, when players run up to the referee and shout in his face. Showing disrespect to the referee.
Jack: I think everybody would like to see this less.
Rich: Well, the rules about talking to referees are a lot stronger this season. We might see a few yellow and red cards at the beginning of the season but overall I think we will see less of this type of thing.
Jack: That would be triffic.
Rich: We’ve just been talking about things that we would like to see in the Premier League and we used the phrase ‘would like’ a lot.
Jack: But we often changed the phrase a little bit because if we say would, would like, would like all the time it becomes very boring.
Rich: We used three forms of ‘would like’.
Jack: The simplest is would like plus the infinitive: I would like to see Bellerin turn into a world class defender.
Rich: You can also say: I would like Liverpool to win the Premier League.
Jack: Another form was a conditional statement. Rich said: It would be brilliant if Liverpool won the Premier League. This is a really common form. Notice that the verb win is the past form in the if clause.
Rich: The third form we used was a question, but it’s not really a question. The meaning is more like a sentence, but it’s a bit like a question tag - it’s an invitation to agree with us. So Jack said: Wouldn’t it be brilliant to see a young player who nobody knows do well?
Jack: When you’ve finished listening to the podcast, have a look at the activities and explanations of these expressions on this page.
Pronunciation
Jack: Each week we’re going to help you with your pronunciation. Sometimes we will look at individual sounds, sometimes at words and phrases and sometimes linking sentences together.
Rich: This week, we’re going to carry on where we finished last week and talk about connected speech. Whenever you hear or use a common phrase in English, the grammar words are likely to be weak - sometimes, they seem to disappear completely.
Jack: In English, what you say is not the same as what you read. English speakers drop or lose lots of sounds when they speak this can make it difficult when listening to people. Let’s look at an example with ‘would’ which Rich used earlier.
Rich: I think it’d be great to see Everton’s Romelu Lukaku as top striker.
Jack: Rich says ‘it’d be great to see’ he doesn’t say ‘it would be great to see’. I’m going to try to say this really slowly and then again faster and again faster till it’s a natural speed.
It ud be
It ud be
It ud be
/ɪtədbɪ/
/ɪʔədbɪ/
/ɪʔədbɪ/
The word ‘would’ almost completely disappears.
Rich: It’s really tricky for learners. There are more examples. I said ‘I’d love to visit the Olympic Stadium’ I didn’t say ‘I would love to visit the Olympic stadium’.
/ədlʌvtə/
/ədlʌvtə/
/ədlʌvtə/
Jack: But, sometimes we use the full form because we want to emphasise that point. Earlier, I said ‘that would surprise me!’
Rich: We would like you to listen to the previous section of the podcast again. There are lots of examples of ‘would’. Listen and think if we are using the short form or the full form of ‘would’.
Jack: When you’ve finished, take a look at the transcript of the podcast at the bottom of this page to check.
Club of the Week
Jack: This week’s club of the week is Arsenal.
Rich: Do you think your team is going to do well, this season?
Jack: Of course, we’ve finished in the top 4 for the last 20 years and I think we’ll do well again this season.
Rich: You’re confident? You haven't bought many players.
Jack: I think that will help us. All the players know each other and other teams will take some time to gel.
Rich: Yes, when a team has a few new players it can take time for them to gel or play together like a team.
Jack: I see that you’ve predicted Arsenal to come 6th on the website. I don’t think this will ever happen and I think we will be Champions this season.
Rich: If you agree with Jack or if you agree with me, let us know on the Arsenal club page.
Football Phrase
Rich: Last week’s football phrase was testimonial match. A testimonial match is a match that is played to show admiration for a specific player and to thank him for staying with a club for a long time. A testimonial match is usually played after a player is with a club for 10 years or more.
Jack: Well done to Alex from Ukraine, Kwesimanifest from Ghana, Abdullah Hussein from Egypt, AssemJuve from Palestine and Hassan_Raja from Pakistan. All of you got the correct answer!
Rich: Have you got a new phrase for us this week?
Jack: This week’s football word is *******. A ******* is something you buy that is good value and is bought for less than it’s usual price. In football, we can say a bargain is a player who didn’t cost a lot of money but plays very well for his team. Clubs are looking for ******** in the transfer market.
Rich: And we were looking for some ******** for our Fantasy Football team, let’s talk about that now.
Fantasy Football
Jack: Thanks to you we now have our Fantasy Football team on Premier Skills English. We’ve got all 15 players in our squad, check out our fantasy football section to get involved. Go to the fans section at the top of this page and you will find it in there!
Rich: We now need to pick the team for our first match this Saturday! Help us choose the starting eleven, our captain and formation in this week’s Fantasy Football section.
Jack: Remember to enter your own team in our Premier Skills League on the Premier League website, too! The Private League password that you need is at the bottom of this page and our fantasy football pages.
Prediction
Jack: So, the first matches are this weekend. Which match are you going to choose to make your first prediction of the new season, Rich?
Rich: I think you probably know, Jack. My team, Liverpool, play your team, Arsenal, on Sunday and I think we’re going to win. I think under Jurgen Klopp Liverpool are looking fresh and dynamic and Arsenal are looking tired and boring. I’m going for a 3-0 win to Liverpool.
Jack: Rich, I think you’re letting your heart rule your head. I’m going to be more realistic and go for a 4-0 win to Arsenal.
Rich: We’ll see. Let’s see who has the best predictions throughout the season. Me, you or the Premier Skills English podcast listeners!
Jack: I don’t think it will be me or you!
Rich: Right, well, that’s all we have time for today!
Jack: Don’t forget to write your answers to our questions the football phrase and your predictions in the comments below. And remember to take a look at our Fantasy Football section and join the discussions!
Rich: Bye for now and enjoy your football!
Quiz
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Form
Premier League Prediction
The Premier League season kicks off this weekend! Each week, Rich and Jack will talk about one match and make their Premier League Prediction. This weekend, Arsenal (Jack's team) play Liverpool (Rich's team). Rich thinks Liverpool will win 3-0 but Jack thinks Arsenal will win 4-0! During the season, we will keep a record of the best predictors on the Premier Skills English website. Will it be Jack? Will it be Rich? Or will it be you?
Make your prediction now!
What do you think?
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What'd you like to see happen in the Premier League this season?
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Which clubs would you like to see do well?
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Which players would you like to see do well?
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Are you looking forward to the new season? Why?
Leave a comment
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Comments
02/02/2023
points
Do Man United fan have any regret about Pogba performances?
02/02/2023 09:07
Arsenal
566
Do Man United fan have any regret about Pogba performances?
02/02/2023
points
Wouldn't it be brilliant if Odegaard or Saka win the Best Player of the season in PL this season?
02/02/2023 09:07
Arsenal
566
Wouldn't it be brilliant if Odegaard or Saka win the Best Player of the season in PL this season?
02/02/2023
points
I would like to see Arteta as the Manager of the year this season.
02/02/2023 09:05
Arsenal
566
I would like to see Arteta as the Manager of the year this season.
02/02/2023
points
This season, it would be great if Arsenal could win the Premier League
02/02/2023 09:05
Arsenal
566
This season, it would be great if Arsenal could win the Premier League
27/07/2021
points
Hi Rich!
Let me suggest for new season. Correct predictions statistics will be proof of being best predictor-:).
Stay fit and healthy.
27/07/2021 11:22
Tottenham Hotspur
5560
Hi Rich!
Let me suggest for new season. Correct predictions statistics will be proof of being best predictor-:).
Stay fit and healthy.
27/07/2021
points
What do you think?
1- It would be great if Everton international player and striker Richarlison who’s been playing in the Brasil Olympic Football Team in Tokyo 2020 transferred to Spurs.
2-I’d like to see Spurs do well.
3- I’d like to see all the players of Spurs do well.
4- I'm looking forward to the new season.I miss thrilling struggle of football.
P.S.
The way of a person solving matters is backed up from her/his family discipline, education and culture. Running up to the referee who is usually older than players and shouting her/his face are unacceptable behaviour. Sometimes rude and uneducated people go forward and use physcial force. This sort of players immedieately should sent off from pitch/team/league even they are stars.
27/07/2021 11:08
Tottenham Hotspur
5560
What do you think?
1- It would be great if Everton international player and striker Richarlison who’s been playing in the Brasil Olympic Football Team in Tokyo 2020 transferred to Spurs.
2-I’d like to see Spurs do well.
3- I’d like to see all the players of Spurs do well.
4- I'm looking forward to the new season.I miss thrilling struggle of football.
P.S.
The way of a person solving matters is backed up from her/his family discipline, education and culture. Running up to the referee who is usually older than players and shouting her/his face are unacceptable behaviour. Sometimes rude and uneducated people go forward and use physcial force. This sort of players immedieately should sent off from pitch/team/league even they are stars.
14/05/2020
points
I think the new football phrase is ( bargain )
14/05/2020 07:26
Manchester United
6539
I think the new football phrase is ( bargain )
14/05/2020
points
I look forward to the new season with optimism , with enthusiasm
I want to watch all the matches
I am on fire :)))
14/05/2020 07:25
Manchester United
6539
I look forward to the new season with optimism , with enthusiasm
I want to watch all the matches
I am on fire :)))
14/05/2020
points
I'd love to see players like Zlatan and Rashford perform very well <3
14/05/2020 07:24
Manchester United
6539
I'd love to see players like Zlatan and Rashford perform very well <3
14/05/2020
points
Clubs to do well for sure my team Manchester United in the new era with the Special one :)
14/05/2020 07:23
Manchester United
6539
Clubs to do well for sure my team Manchester United in the new era with the Special one :)
14/05/2020
points
I'd like to see more overhead kick goals. They are so spectacular :)
14/05/2020 07:22
Manchester United
6539
I'd like to see more overhead kick goals. They are so spectacular :)
31/08/2016
points
I can count around
4 times of using full form and around 17 time of using weak form
31/08/2016 19:38
Manchester United
129
I can count around
4 times of using full form and around 17 time of using weak form
31/08/2016
points
Hi Poui
Welcome to Premier Skills English and thanks for your message! Yes, weak forms are much more common.
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
31/08/2016 21:36
Liverpool
594
Hi Poui
Welcome to Premier Skills English and thanks for your message! Yes, weak forms are much more common.
Rich - The Premier Skills English Team
23/08/2016
points
Arsenal will be the champion!!!
23/08/2016 17:18
Arsenal
2337
Arsenal will be the champion!!!
13/08/2016
points
great
13/08/2016 23:44
Chelsea
160
great
12/08/2016
points
Great
12/08/2016 22:22
Liverpool
962
Great
12/08/2016
points
1. I'd like to see that the top scorer of the season were a Spanish player.
2. I'm Arsenal's fan, so I'd like that they were champions.
3. Mesut Ozil have to prove this quality and don't be missed the middle of the season
4. I love watching Premier League's matchs because are very exciting and passionate
Correct me, please
12/08/2016 16:25
Arsenal
951
1. I'd like to see that the top scorer of the season were a Spanish player.
2. I'm Arsenal's fan, so I'd like that they were champions.
3. Mesut Ozil have to prove this quality and don't be missed the middle of the season
4. I love watching Premier League's matchs because are very exciting and passionate
Correct me, please
12/08/2016
points
This week's phrase is *******
12/08/2016 16:14
Arsenal
951
This week's phrase is *******
12/08/2016
points
Quite right Davilillons!
12/08/2016 16:18
Arsenal
560
Quite right Davilillons!
12/08/2016
points
Wouldn't be brilliant to see Arsenal win the Championship this season? Man united and Chelsea could hardly do bad this season. I'd like to see Mahrez and Vardy doing as well as previous year. I am looking forward to the new season because I am fan of soccer. Secret word : *******
12/08/2016 15:23
Manchester City
3988
Wouldn't be brilliant to see Arsenal win the Championship this season? Man united and Chelsea could hardly do bad this season. I'd like to see Mahrez and Vardy doing as well as previous year. I am looking forward to the new season because I am fan of soccer. Secret word : *******
12/08/2016
points
Well done Elghoul!
12/08/2016 16:17
Arsenal
560
Well done Elghoul!
11/08/2016
points
André and payet at west ham resonates thoughts of their days at marsie
11/08/2016 17:23
Manchester United
4779
André and payet at west ham resonates thoughts of their days at marsie
11/08/2016
points
Middlesbrough burley and hull city would have to be on top of their games and keep their focus to remain in the league especially Middlesbrough given that they have been out for a long while
11/08/2016 17:21
Manchester United
4779
Middlesbrough burley and hull city would have to be on top of their games and keep their focus to remain in the league especially Middlesbrough given that they have been out for a long while
11/08/2016
points
Because of the interesting signings am seeing the teams making
11/08/2016 12:10
Manchester United
4779
Because of the interesting signings am seeing the teams making
11/08/2016
points
I can't wait for the new season
11/08/2016 12:09
Manchester United
4779
I can't wait for the new season
11/08/2016
points
It would be great to see Rashford get more play time for united
11/08/2016 09:53
Manchester United
4779
It would be great to see Rashford get more play time for united
11/08/2016
points
Wouldn't it be a brilliant idea to fans to select the players they want to play for their team every week through a poll
11/08/2016 09:50
Manchester United
4779
Wouldn't it be a brilliant idea to fans to select the players they want to play for their team every week through a poll
10/08/2016
points
This week's phrase is *******
10/08/2016 21:09
Manchester City
23
This week's phrase is *******
10/08/2016
points
I think that Liverpool will win 2-1 .
10/08/2016 21:00
Liverpool
3705
I think that Liverpool will win 2-1 .
10/08/2016
points
The phrase is *******.
10/08/2016 20:58
Liverpool
3705
The phrase is *******.
10/08/2016
points
Yes i am,because when the league starts you will have a joy while you are watching the matches,it is the best league in the world.
10/08/2016 20:56
Liverpool
3705
Yes i am,because when the league starts you will have a joy while you are watching the matches,it is the best league in the world.
10/08/2016
points
I would like to see all Liverpool players do well,Mahrez,Feghouli,Vardy,lukaku.
10/08/2016 20:54
Liverpool
3705
I would like to see all Liverpool players do well,Mahrez,Feghouli,Vardy,lukaku.
10/08/2016
points
I would like to see Liverpool and Leicester City and Everton do well.It would be great if Liverpool wins the title this season.
10/08/2016 20:52
Liverpool
3705
I would like to see Liverpool and Leicester City and Everton do well.It would be great if Liverpool wins the title this season.
10/08/2016
points
I would like to see very exciting matches this season and a lot of thriller between the the teams.
10/08/2016 20:51
Liverpool
3705
I would like to see very exciting matches this season and a lot of thriller between the the teams.
10/08/2016
points
I'm always looking forward to the new season in the PL because it's the one of the most exciting things in our lives. Through PL we learn about english culture, tradition, history, philosophy of this game, local geography, mutual respect and fair play. And not only the PL but the Championship, League 1 and 2. We love this game!
10/08/2016 14:22
Arsenal
3557
I'm always looking forward to the new season in the PL because it's the one of the most exciting things in our lives. Through PL we learn about english culture, tradition, history, philosophy of this game, local geography, mutual respect and fair play. And not only the PL but the Championship, League 1 and 2. We love this game!
10/08/2016
points
Wouldn't it be nice to see breakthrough stars find their place in the PL? New young players like Jerome Sinclair or Reine Adelaide..
10/08/2016 14:18
Arsenal
3557
Wouldn't it be nice to see breakthrough stars find their place in the PL? New young players like Jerome Sinclair or Reine Adelaide..
10/08/2016
points
This week's football phrase is '*******'.
10/08/2016 14:12
Arsenal
3557
This week's football phrase is '*******'.
10/08/2016
points
Also I'd like to see Arsenal winning the league and Everton qualify for the CL next season. It will be interesting to see what M'boro can do in the PL...
10/08/2016 14:10
Arsenal
3557
Also I'd like to see Arsenal winning the league and Everton qualify for the CL next season. It will be interesting to see what M'boro can do in the PL...
10/08/2016
points
I'd like to see more young players excel in the premier league this season
10/08/2016 14:07
Manchester United
4779
I'd like to see more young players excel in the premier league this season
10/08/2016
points
I'd like to see as many unpredictable matches as possible. The last season was thrilling and I expect to see that in the upcoming season.
10/08/2016 14:07
Arsenal
3557
I'd like to see as many unpredictable matches as possible. The last season was thrilling and I expect to see that in the upcoming season.
10/08/2016
points
Liverpool 2-1 arsenal
10/08/2016 14:03
Manchester United
4779
Liverpool 2-1 arsenal
10/08/2016
points
This week's phrase is *******
10/08/2016 14:00
Manchester United
4779
This week's phrase is *******