As much as a not-so-diehard football fan I am, I read football news every single day. In an earlier entry Learning Method: Learning English From Sport Blogs and News I have briefly discussed the benefits of learning English from sport related articles, this time I will pick out some more goodies from 3 sports articles.
Lavezzi happy in France for now
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| Ezequiel Lavezzi Image from FIFA |
Ezequiel Lavezzi's agent has dismissed speculation the Argentine international is pining for a return to Serie A this summer, saying the Paris Saint-Germain forward wants to remain in the French capital for now.
However, Lavezzi has often emphasised how much he enjoys the freedom afforded him in France following his goldfish-bowl existence in Naples, and his representative, Alejandro Mazzoni, told TMW a summer departure is not on the agenda.
Bayern bulldoze Barca to reach final
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| Bayern Munich beat FC. Barcelona on a 7 -0 aggregate Image from Soccernet |
"Brilliant Bayern Munich completed a stunning Champions League semi-final mauling of Barcelona, beating them 3-0 on the night to progress 7-0 on aggregate, to set up a mouthwatering Wembley final against Bundesliga rivals Borussia Dortmund."
Robben and Philipp Lahm both looked poised to give Bayern what would almost certainly have been a tie-ending away goal in the opening 20 minutes but Pique produced brilliant last-ditch tackles to deny both players.
Ribery was also involved four minutes later as Bayern heaped more misery on Barca with a third goal.
Zanetti determined to overcome Achilles injury
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| Javier Zanetti injured his left Achilles tendor Image from Guardian |
After surgery (scheduled for Tuesday), he will be immobilised for eight weeks, before starting on his long road to recovery, which is estimated to see him returning to the pitch in eight or nine months. Former Inter doctor Piero Volpi has no doubts that his old friend will overcome this set back without too much trouble: "Zanetti has an exceptional physique and has never suffered any major injuries, so I think he will play again. Much of course depends on the motivation, but when I saw how he was joking when he left the hospital ('I had to change the wheels after many kilometers') it seems to me that he is already well underway."
As you can see, the English of sports are so vibrantly packed with idioms and metaphors, so if you dislike sports or have no interests in sports, you're missing out a lot in terms of learning! Try open up yourself a bit and give sports news a go!
PS: Some of you might think this article is kind of lazy on my part, and yes, I am, but once I have completed my PhD proposal, things should get a lot better.
Vocabulary:
dismiss -- (vb) [T] to decide that something or someone is not important and not worth considering:
pine -- (vb)[I] to become increasingly thin and weak because of unhappiness, especially after the death of a loved person:
goldfish-bowl -- (n)[C] (US also fishbowl) a bowl that is usually round and made of glass and is used for keeping pet fish in, especially goldfish:
bulldoze -- (vb)[T] to destroy buildings and make an area flat with a bulldozer:
mouthwatering -- (adj) (of food) having a very good appearance or smell that makes you want to eat
poised -- (adj) ready to move, or prepared and waiting for something to happen:
stamina -- (n)[U] the physical or mental strength to do something for a long time, esp. something difficult:
legendary -- (adj) very famous and admired or spoken about:
aura -- (n)[C] a feeling or character that a person or place seems to have:
immune -- (adj) protected against a particular disease by particular substances in the blood:
immobilise -- (vb)[T] (UK usually immobilise) to stop something or someone from moving:
exceptional -- (adj) approving much greater than usual, especially in skill, intelligence, quality, etc.:
physique -- (n)[C] the shape and size of a human body:
underway -- (adj) [after verb] If something is underway, it is happening now:
vibrantly -- (adv) describes colour or light that is bright and strong:
Resources:
Learning Method: Learning English From Sport Blogs and News @ Locky's English Playground
http://lockyep.blogspot.hk/2013/03/learning-method-learning-english-from.html
Lavezzi happy in France for now @ Soccernet
http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1430666/lavezzi-happy-france-now?cc=4716
Bayern bulldoze Barca to reach final @ Soccernet
http://espnfc.com/uk/en/report/364636/report.html?soccernet=true&cc=5739
Zanetti determined to overcome Achilles injury @ Soccernet Blog
http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/intermilan/id/1166?cc=4716
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/dismiss_1?q=dismiss
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/pine_2
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/goldfish-bowl?q=goldfish-bowl
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/bulldoze?q=bulldoze
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/american-english/mouth-watering?q=mouthwatering
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/american-english/poised_1
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/american-english/stamina?q=stamina
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/legendary_1?q=legendary+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/aura?q=aura
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/immune?q=immune+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/immobilize?q=immobilise+
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/exceptional?q=exceptional
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/physique?q=physique
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/underway?q=underway
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/vibrant?q=vibrantly
