June 17, 2010
Dozens of sports writers attended the match and they all had different ways of describing it. Here are excerpts from two of the stories. The first is quite standard, beginning with a short summary, then adding quotes from the winning and losing coaches and then describing the action in detail. The second story is very different and, for me at least, more interesting. Let's see what you think.
Once again you can begin with the fifa video of the game's highlights.
upset – an unexpected win over an opponent thought to be stronger ชนะโดยไม่คาดฝัน, พลิกล็อก
excerpt – a part of a longer speech, song, text, etc. บทคัดย่อ
highlight – the most exciting, impressive, or interesting part of an event เหตุการณ์สำคัญ, จุดสำคัญ
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Click button to listen to Swizerland Spain 1 and rightclick to download
A rock solid defence and a tremendous goalkeeping effort from Diego Benaglio saw the Swiss take the lead in the 51st minute through Gelson Fernandes and withstand wave after wave of pressure to hold on for the win in the Group H clash.
The victory was Switzerland's first-ever over Spain in 19 games dating back 85 years.
"It is a historic victory," said Switzerland's German coach Ottmar Hitzfeld.
"We haven't beaten Spain for such a long time. We have taken a step towards the second round, but now more will be expected of us. We have to remain attentive and focussed," added the 61-year-old, one of only three coaches to have won the Champions League with two different clubs.
His Spanish counterpart Vicente Del Bosque said that his side had done everything but score.
"We did all that was possible but we lacked accuracy where it mattered," said the former Real Madrid coach.
"They then caught us on the counter-attack. Now, we have to rediscover our motivation.
Fernandes' scrambled
goal was exactly the type pundits
said
the Swiss might score against a Spanish team whose slick passing game
failed to convert territory and overwhelming
possessional advantage
into anything concrete.
A long, straight goalkick was picked up by striker Eren Derdiyok, whose path was blocked by an onrushing Iker Casillas.
In the melee, the ball squirted into the path of defender Gerard Pique who fell as he twisted trying to clear the ball, and the Cape Verde-born Fernandes was left with the easiest of tap-ins. AFP
favourite – a team or person expected to win a competition
unfancied – not expected to win
tremendous – very good; very much ที่ดี ที่มากมหาศาล
withstand – to be strong enough not to be hurt or damaged by extreme force, extreme conditions, etc. ทนทาน
attentive – watching or listening to something carefully ระมัดระวัง, อย่างตั้งอกตั้งใจ
counterpart – someone or something that has the same job or purpose as another person or thing, but in a different country, time, situation, or organisation (in this case, both are coaches) ผู้ที่คล้ายกันมาก
counterattack – an attack against someone who has just attacked you in a game, war, or argument
motivation – a reason for doing something แรงจูงใจ
scrambled – hurried and confused
pundit – someone who is an expert in a subject, and is often asked to talk to the public about that subject ผู้เชี่ยวชาญ
slick – done in a very impressive way that seems to need very little effort คล่องแคล่ว, ว่องไว
overwhelming – by a very large amount or margin อย่างท่วมท้น
advantage – a condition giving a greater chance of success ความได้เปรียบ
onrushing – moving quickly towards someone or something เคลื่อนที่ไปข้างหน้าอย่างรุนแรง
melee – a large uncontrolled situation, in which people are moving in different directions การต่อสู้การชุลมุน
squirted – moved quickly with a lot of force พ่นออกมา
twist – to bend or turn into a different shape – ทำให้ผิดรูปร่าง
Click button to listen to Swizerland Spain 2 and rightclick to download
DURBAN, South Africa—Spain has the best team in the world. Allegedly. All those years of World Cup failure are in the past. Supposedly.
But if all that's true—as we heard time and time again in the run-up to the World Cup—try explaining what happened against anonymous Switzerland Wednesday.
The Swiss shocked Spain, 1-0, in their Group H opener, despite getting outplayed throughout. It's easily the biggest upset so far, one that might reverberate for the rest of the tournament—whether Spain recovers to survive the group stage or not.
The odds are overwhelmingly against it, based on history. Since the World Cup went to its present 32-team format in 1998, 36 teams have lost their initial match. Just three (8.3%) still advanced. One of the victims was Spain itself, in 1998, after its upset loss to Nigeria.
And even if Spain does come back—which it very well might, as it'll be favored in its remaining matches against Honduras and Chile—its path through the knockout round may have just gotten immeasurably tougher. Now that the Swiss are the favorites to win Group H, Spain—as the runner-up—would have to face the Group G winner in the second round. Hello, Brazil.
allegedly – claimed to have done something wrong, but not yet proven ที่ถูกอ้าง
supposedly – believed to be; thought to be เป็นที่เชื่อว่า
anonymous – not known or famous ซึ่งไม่มีลักษณะเด่น
reverberate – to shake มีผลสะท้อนต่อเนื่อง
survive – to continue to exist or, in this case, to continue to take part in a competition อยู่รอด สืบต่อไปได้
initial – early; first เบื้องต้น
immeasurable – so large or great that it cannot be measured or known exactly มากจนไม่สามารถจะประมาณได้
First big upset
An upset is when a team that is expected to win a match ends up losing it. That's what happened last night in Durban, South Africa.Dozens of sports writers attended the match and they all had different ways of describing it. Here are excerpts from two of the stories. The first is quite standard, beginning with a short summary, then adding quotes from the winning and losing coaches and then describing the action in detail. The second story is very different and, for me at least, more interesting. Let's see what you think.
Once again you can begin with the fifa video of the game's highlights.
upset – an unexpected win over an opponent thought to be stronger ชนะโดยไม่คาดฝัน, พลิกล็อก
excerpt – a part of a longer speech, song, text, etc. บทคัดย่อ
highlight – the most exciting, impressive, or interesting part of an event เหตุการณ์สำคัญ, จุดสำคัญ
Click button to listen to Swizerland Spain 1 and rightclick to download
Swiss shock favourites Spain
Durban, AFP World Cup favourites Spain crashed to a shock 1-0 defeat to unfancied Switzerland in their opening game of the tournament here on Wednesday.A rock solid defence and a tremendous goalkeeping effort from Diego Benaglio saw the Swiss take the lead in the 51st minute through Gelson Fernandes and withstand wave after wave of pressure to hold on for the win in the Group H clash.
The victory was Switzerland's first-ever over Spain in 19 games dating back 85 years.
"It is a historic victory," said Switzerland's German coach Ottmar Hitzfeld.
"We haven't beaten Spain for such a long time. We have taken a step towards the second round, but now more will be expected of us. We have to remain attentive and focussed," added the 61-year-old, one of only three coaches to have won the Champions League with two different clubs.
His Spanish counterpart Vicente Del Bosque said that his side had done everything but score.
"We did all that was possible but we lacked accuracy where it mattered," said the former Real Madrid coach.
"They then caught us on the counter-attack. Now, we have to rediscover our motivation.
Fernandes' scrambled
goal was exactly the type pundits
said
the Swiss might score against a Spanish team whose slick passing game
failed to convert territory and overwhelming
possessional advantage
into anything concrete.A long, straight goalkick was picked up by striker Eren Derdiyok, whose path was blocked by an onrushing Iker Casillas.
In the melee, the ball squirted into the path of defender Gerard Pique who fell as he twisted trying to clear the ball, and the Cape Verde-born Fernandes was left with the easiest of tap-ins. AFP
favourite – a team or person expected to win a competition
unfancied – not expected to win
tremendous – very good; very much ที่ดี ที่มากมหาศาล
withstand – to be strong enough not to be hurt or damaged by extreme force, extreme conditions, etc. ทนทาน
attentive – watching or listening to something carefully ระมัดระวัง, อย่างตั้งอกตั้งใจ
counterpart – someone or something that has the same job or purpose as another person or thing, but in a different country, time, situation, or organisation (in this case, both are coaches) ผู้ที่คล้ายกันมาก
counterattack – an attack against someone who has just attacked you in a game, war, or argument
motivation – a reason for doing something แรงจูงใจ
scrambled – hurried and confused
pundit – someone who is an expert in a subject, and is often asked to talk to the public about that subject ผู้เชี่ยวชาญ
slick – done in a very impressive way that seems to need very little effort คล่องแคล่ว, ว่องไว
overwhelming – by a very large amount or margin อย่างท่วมท้น
advantage – a condition giving a greater chance of success ความได้เปรียบ
onrushing – moving quickly towards someone or something เคลื่อนที่ไปข้างหน้าอย่างรุนแรง
melee – a large uncontrolled situation, in which people are moving in different directions การต่อสู้การชุลมุน
squirted – moved quickly with a lot of force พ่นออกมา
twist – to bend or turn into a different shape – ทำให้ผิดรูปร่าง
Click button to listen to Swizerland Spain 2 and rightclick to download
Switzerland Shocks Spain, 1-0 .
By DARREN EVERSON, Wall Street JournalDURBAN, South Africa—Spain has the best team in the world. Allegedly. All those years of World Cup failure are in the past. Supposedly.
But if all that's true—as we heard time and time again in the run-up to the World Cup—try explaining what happened against anonymous Switzerland Wednesday.
The Swiss shocked Spain, 1-0, in their Group H opener, despite getting outplayed throughout. It's easily the biggest upset so far, one that might reverberate for the rest of the tournament—whether Spain recovers to survive the group stage or not.
The odds are overwhelmingly against it, based on history. Since the World Cup went to its present 32-team format in 1998, 36 teams have lost their initial match. Just three (8.3%) still advanced. One of the victims was Spain itself, in 1998, after its upset loss to Nigeria.
And even if Spain does come back—which it very well might, as it'll be favored in its remaining matches against Honduras and Chile—its path through the knockout round may have just gotten immeasurably tougher. Now that the Swiss are the favorites to win Group H, Spain—as the runner-up—would have to face the Group G winner in the second round. Hello, Brazil.
allegedly – claimed to have done something wrong, but not yet proven ที่ถูกอ้าง
supposedly – believed to be; thought to be เป็นที่เชื่อว่า
anonymous – not known or famous ซึ่งไม่มีลักษณะเด่น
reverberate – to shake มีผลสะท้อนต่อเนื่อง
survive – to continue to exist or, in this case, to continue to take part in a competition อยู่รอด สืบต่อไปได้
initial – early; first เบื้องต้น
immeasurable – so large or great that it cannot be measured or known exactly มากจนไม่สามารถจะประมาณได้