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Matchweek 17: Set your sights on something

Matchweek 17: Set your sights on something

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, Rich and Jack talk about the latest action from the Premier League and have lots of football English for you to learn.

Transcript

If the listening is a bit difficult, try listening and reading at the same time.
Read the transcript and listen at the same time.

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 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: Coming up later this week, we’ll have a new podcast for you. On Thursday, we’re going to publish a new podcast: Learning Vocabulary: Christmas around the world

Jack: Again we’re going to give you the chance to speak to us and appear in our podcast. 

Rich: Over the last couple of week’s we’ve spoken to listeners from Indonesia, Argentina and Brazil - last week we spoke to Mario from Mexico. He spoke about bargains and Premier League football shirts he has bought.

Jack: You can listen to Mario in our latest podcast about shopping for bargains. It’s on the Premier Skills English homepage now.

Rich: This week we want to do the same thing. We are going to ask you three questions and we want you to contact us by email with your answers and contact information so we can call you.

Jack: Send us an email to premierskills@britishcouncil.org

Rich: The questions are all connected to this week’s podcast: Learning Vocabulary: Christmas around the world. Here are the three questions:

Jack: Question 1: How will you celebrate Christmas?

Rich: Question 2: Do most people celebrate Christmas in your country?

Jack: Question 3: Can you tell us a traditional Christmas custom that is specific to your country?

Rich: Send us an email with your answers and we’ll get in touch to talk to you tomorrow or on Wednesday so we can get you into the Podcast on Thursday.

Jack: The email address again is: premierskills@britishcouncil.org.

Rich: Let’s get on with our round-up of Matchweek seventeen with our headlines.

Headlines

Jack: Liverpool set off for Qatar in fine form.

Rich: Liverpool beat Watford 2-0 at Anfield to push their lead at the top of the Premier League into double figures. Mohamed Salah got both goals and now the Reds can set their sights on becoming FIFA’s Club World Champions this week.

Jack: Canaries and Foxes share the points.

Rich: Leicester City’s winning run came to an end when they could only manage a one-all draw against struggling Norwich City. Teemu Pukki put Norwich into a first-half lead but an own goal by Norwich City’s goalkeeper levelled things up.

Jack: Chelsea fall to Bournemouth.

Rich: Bournemouth pulled off a surprise win at Stamford Bridge to give the Cherries their first points in six matches. Dan Gosling got the only goal of the game in the 84th minute. The original offside decision was overturned by VAR.

Jack: There was also a fantastic 3-0 away win for Manchester City at Arsenal and good wins for Burnley, Sheffield United, West Ham and Tottenham.

Rich: So, do you think Liverpool will become Champions of the World this week.

Jack: I don’t see why not! Let’s see what happens in Qatar.

Vocabulary alert!

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

Rich: Our six words and phrases this week are: to set off, to set your sights on something, one-all, to level things up, to pull off and to overturn a decision.

Jack: Let’s start with the phrases we used to talk about the Liverpool - Watford match. We said that Liverpool set off for Qatar in fine form.

Rich: To set off is a phrasal verb that has a few common meanings but here it means to begin a trip. This can be a short trip to school or work or a long vacation.

Jack: I set off for work at eight every morning. Liverpool are setting off for Qatar to play in the Club World Cup.

Rich: Liverpool have set their sights on becoming World Champions. To set your sights on something is an idiom which means to decide you want to do something and to try everything to try to achieve that thing.

Jack: When you are young, you might set your sights on becoming a teacher, a doctor or even a footballer.

Rich: Our next two phrases come from the match between Leicester City and Norwich City. We said that the match finished one all. This is a very common phrase to use when a match finishes one one.

Jack: We can say one all, two all, three all, four all but we can’t say when there are no goals. In a match with no goals, we say nil-nil or goalless.

Rich: We said an own goal by the goalkeeper levelled things up. To level things up means to equalise - to make the scores level again.

Jack: Finally, let’s look at a couple of phrases from the Chelsea - Bournemouth match. We said Bournemouth pulled off a surprise win.

Rich: To pull off means to achieve something difficult or surprising. We use it a lot in sports when there is a surprise or an upset. 

Jack: You might say that Boris Johnson pulled off an amazing win in the UK general election.

Jack: Our final phrase this week is to overturn a decision. We’re hearing this a lot these days because of VAR. To overturn a decision means to officially decide that the original decision was not correct and to change it.

Rich: In football, we often hear this in the passive, the decision was overturned. It’s also used a lot in connection to criminal courts and decisions. The original decision or verdict was overturned.

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 off, to set your sights on something, one-all, to level things up, to pull off and to overturn a decision.

Football Awards

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

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

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

Jack: Let’s start with Player of the Week. There were some great performances last week. John Fleck got two for Sheffield United as did Mohamed Salah for Liverpool but our PLayer of the Week goes to another player who scored twice.

Rich: Our Player of the Week is Manchester CIty’s Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian was fantastic against Arsenal.

Jack: Now Team of the Week. We could give it to Manchester City because they were brilliant but we’re going to give it to Bournemouth.

Rich: The Cherries had lost their previous five matches and had loads of injuries so to go to Chelsea and pull of that result is outstanding.

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: Goal number one: Kevin De Bruyne for Manchester City against Arsenal. The Belgian’s first goal was fabulous.

Rich: Goal number two: Adama Traore for Wolves versus Tottenham. A blast from outside the box but it wasn’t enough for Wolves.

Jack: Goal number three: Mason Greenwood for Manchester United against Everton. The teenager’s precise finish saved a point for the Red Devils.

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.

Rich: Last week I went for a CIty win at Arsenal and they won - much more esily than I had predicted.

Jack: Bad times at Arsenal at the moment. Which match are you going to look at this week?

Rich: Matchweek 18 sees a big London Derby. It’s fourth against fifth. It’s North London against West London and it’s Jose Mourinho up against the club where he made his name in the Premier League. Tottenham host Chelsea and it is definitely an interesting match up. Chelsea have been playing great attacking football under Frank Lampard but have not been in great form recently which has allowed Spurs to close the gap to those all-important Champions League places. Since Mourinho took charge, Spurs have also been scoring lots of goals which is surprising for a manager who normally prioritises a tight defence. I actually don’t think there will be many goals in this one and I’m going to go for a home win. Final score: Tottenham 1-0 Chelsea

Jack: This has got draw written all over it. Let us know in the comments section what you think the score will be.

Rich: 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. 

Jack: If you listen to us on Apple Podcasts, don’t forget to leave us a review. We’d love to hear from you. And don’t forget to contact us by email with your answers to our Christmas questions.

Rich: The email is premierskills@britishcouncil.org Bye for now and enjoy your football.

Results

Matchweek 17:

Wolves 1-2 Tottenham

Sheffield United 2-0 Aston Villa

Burnley 1-0 Newcastle United

Liverpool 2-0 Watford

Arsenal 0-3 Manchester City

Southampton 0-1 West Ham

Manchester United 1-1 Everton

Chelsea 0-1 Bournemouth

Leicester City 1-1 Norwich City

Crystal Palace L-L Brighton

Headlines

Liverpool set off for Qatar in fine form

Mohamed Salah got a brace against Watford.

Liverpool beat Watford 2-0 at Anfield to push their lead at the top of the Premier League into double figures. Mohamed Salah got both goals and now the Reds can set their sights on becoming FIFA’s Club World Champions this week.

Headlines

Canaries and Foxes share the points

Leicester had won eight in a row before they drew against Norwich.

Leicester City’s winning run came to an end when they could only manage a one-all draw against struggling Norwich City. Teemu Pukki put Norwich into a first-half lead but an own goal by Norwich City’s goalkeeper levelled things up.

Headlines

Chelsea fall to Bournemouth

Dan Gosling got the winner for Bournemouth against Chelsea.

Bournemouth pulled off a surprise win at Stamford Bridge to give the Cherries their first points in six matches. Dan Gosling got the only goal of the game in the 84th minute. The original offside decision was overturned by VAR.

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?

Liverpool set off for Qatar in fine form. To set off means to begin a trip or journey. Jack sets off for work at eight every morning.

The Reds can set their sights on becoming FIFA’s Club World Champions this week. To set your sights on something means to decide to do something and try everything to achieve it.

Leicester could only manage a one-all draw against Norwich City. One all is a very common phrase to use when a match finishes one one (1-1).

An own goal by Norwich City’s goalkeeper levelled things up. This phrase means to make things equal (to equalise).

Bournemouth pulled off a surprise win at Stamford Bridge. This means to achieve something difficult or surprising. 

The original offside decision was overturned by VAR. To overturn a decision means to officially decide that the original decision was not correct and to change it.

Mason Greenwood levelled things up for Man Utd against Everton.

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?

Manchester CIty's Kevin de Bruyne in action against Arsenal.

Player of the Week: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)

Team of the Week: Bournemouth

Goal of the Week: Look at the three options from Matchweek 17 and let us know which goal was best in the comments section!

Goal 1

Kevin De Bruyne for Manchester City against Arsenal.

Goal 2

Adama Traore for Wolves versus Tottenham.

Goal 3

Mason Greenwood for Manchester United against Everton.

The Big Match

Spurs v Chelsea

Jose Mourinho is up against his old club this weekend.

The big match this weekend is the London derby between Spurs and Chelsea. Rich thinks Spurs will win.

What are your predictions? Have a listen to what Rich says and then make your prediction and talk about any of next weekend's matches below.

Football Chat

What do you think?

Will Liverpool win the World Club Cup?

Jack and Rich have spoken about Matchweek 17 in the Premier League. Now it's your turn! Have a look at the questions and write your answers in the comments section below.

  1. Rich and Jack chose Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne as Player of the Week. Do you agree? 
  2. Jack and Rich selected Bournemouth as their Team of the Week. Do you agree?
  3. Rich and Jack picked three goals for the Goal of the Week award? Did you see them? Which do you think was best?
  4. Use this week's vocabulary: What prizes do you think clubs have their sights on this season? What's the most surprising result your team have ever pulled off?
  5. Can you use 'to level things up', 'one-all' or 'to overturn a decision' in a sentence?

Don't forget to get in touch with us at premierskills@britishcouncil.org if you want to join Rich and Jack on this week's podcast! The questions we want you to answer are:

  • Do you and most people in your country celebrate Christmas?
  • If you do, how will you celebrate Christmas?
  • Can you tell us a traditional Christmas custom that is specific to your country?

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Comments

hsn's picture
hsn
19/12/2021
TR
5525
points

• Do you and most people in your country celebrate Christmas? No, only Christian Turkish people celebrate it. Most people celebrate new year.
• If you do, how will you celebrate Christmas? Unfortunately, I don’t celebrate it.
• Can you tell us a traditional Christmas custom that is specific to your country? I’m sorry, I’ve no info on this topic. Gathering in the house for dinner and playing games like tombola is spesific to my country at the new year celebrations.
Phrases
• A carpenter plane is needed to level wood up.
• If you exceeding speed limit your car might be overturned.


hsn's picture
hsn
19/12/2021 17:27
Turkey
Tottenham Hotspur
5525

• Do you and most people in your country celebrate Christmas? No, only Christian Turkish people celebrate it. Most people celebrate new year.
• If you do, how will you celebrate Christmas? Unfortunately, I don’t celebrate it.
• Can you tell us a traditional Christmas custom that is specific to your country? I’m sorry, I’ve no info on this topic. Gathering in the house for dinner and playing games like tombola is spesific to my country at the new year celebrations.
Phrases
• A carpenter plane is needed to level wood up.
• If you exceeding speed limit your car might be overturned.

elghoul's picture
elghoul
18/12/2019
DZ
3988
points

1. I saw De Bruyne on tv live. He scored a brace and made an assist. Perhaps the best this week but he is not as strong as he used to be. Some signs of fragile steps perhaps on his runs.

2. Good performance for Bournemouth. It is not easy after failing to grab any point in five games.

3. I'll go for Adama Traore of Wolves.

4. Lots of club are putting their sights on Champions League qualifications. Leicester best result had been pulled off on 2016 Premier League title.

5. What frustations are happening these days with VAR overturning referee's decisions. 

Man U struggled to level things up however they were happy with  this one-all draw.

Prediction Tottenham 1 Chelsea 1


elghoul's picture
elghoul
18/12/2019 12:22
Algeria
Manchester City
3988

1. I saw De Bruyne on tv live. He scored a brace and made an assist. Perhaps the best this week but he is not as strong as he used to be. Some signs of fragile steps perhaps on his runs.

2. Good performance for Bournemouth. It is not easy after failing to grab any point in five games.

3. I'll go for Adama Traore of Wolves.

4. Lots of club are putting their sights on Champions League qualifications. Leicester best result had been pulled off on 2016 Premier League title.

5. What frustations are happening these days with VAR overturning referee's decisions. 

Man U struggled to level things up however they were happy with  this one-all draw.

Prediction Tottenham 1 Chelsea 1

Toha_23's picture
Toha_23
18/12/2019
UA
298
points

1. Bournemouth's keeper Ramsdale is my choise. Chealsea's forwards are really "lions" this season, and Aaron made a miracle that night. Arsenal isn't a top club at the moment (actually for the last few years), and they are one of the easyest prey, especially for the team from the top. ManCity played without 2 Silvas and Kun. What line-up should the Citizens have to give a chance for the Gunners to level things up?!
2. It's the most complicated choice, because Norvich was absolutely magnificent. I wouldn't be surprised if they played at home (probably everyone still remember the sensation against ManCity), but away!
3. I think non of Rich's and Jack's:) But the last of Mo's Salah... It was doubly spectacular when the ball went between the legs of the defender, masterpeice!


Toha_23's picture
Toha_23
18/12/2019 05:51
Ukraine
Leicester City
298

1. Bournemouth's keeper Ramsdale is my choise. Chealsea's forwards are really "lions" this season, and Aaron made a miracle that night. Arsenal isn't a top club at the moment (actually for the last few years), and they are one of the easyest prey, especially for the team from the top. ManCity played without 2 Silvas and Kun. What line-up should the Citizens have to give a chance for the Gunners to level things up?!
2. It's the most complicated choice, because Norvich was absolutely magnificent. I wouldn't be surprised if they played at home (probably everyone still remember the sensation against ManCity), but away!
3. I think non of Rich's and Jack's:) But the last of Mo's Salah... It was doubly spectacular when the ball went between the legs of the defender, masterpeice!

Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019
UA
6278
points

Manchester City have undoubtedly their sights on the Champions' League trophy, but Real Madrid might not agree with them and overturn their decisive efforts.


Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019 12:41
Ukraine
Liverpool
6278

Manchester City have undoubtedly their sights on the Champions' League trophy, but Real Madrid might not agree with them and overturn their decisive efforts.

Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019
UA
6278
points

Mason Greenwood's so much needed goal for Manchester United against Everton was the Goal of the Week.

 


Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019 12:41
Ukraine
Liverpool
6278

Mason Greenwood's so much needed goal for Manchester United against Everton was the Goal of the Week.

 

Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019
UA
6278
points

Player of the Week: Kevin De Bruyne 

Team of the Week: Tottenham with two amazing goals against not-easy-to-overcome Wolves at their pitch. 


Alex_from_Ukraine's picture
Alex_from_Ukraine
17/12/2019 12:32
Ukraine
Liverpool
6278

Player of the Week: Kevin De Bruyne 

Team of the Week: Tottenham with two amazing goals against not-easy-to-overcome Wolves at their pitch. 

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
7Vietnam19941
8Turkey19810
9Macedonia19074
10Bosnia and Herzegovina16333
Club ranking
RankNameScore
1Manchester United141846
2Liverpool110282
3Chelsea88561
4Arsenal85717
5Manchester City56951
6Tottenham Hotspur19169
7Newcastle United10457
8West Ham United7454
9AFC Bournemouth4458
10Crystal Palace4240

Level

3
Average: 3 (1 vote)

Goals

Improve your football English.

Practise your listening skills.

Make your prediction for next week's big Premier League match.