If you didn’t know much about the upcoming fixtures and wondered why players were being polite on the pitch, there is a fair chance you have been taking in some English soccer commentary.
There are a number of phrases the English tend to use that Americans do not. Here are 10:
Brilliant: very good. If a player makes a ‘brilliant’ tackle, he has excelled himself.
Class: talent. If a player regularly demonstrates his talent on the field, he is showing his ‘class.’
Didn’t know much about it: an expression used mainly by commentators when a player’s part in an incident is accidental. For example, if the ball is hit at power towards goal and the goalkeeper involuntarily deflects it over with his head, ‘he didn’t know much about it.’
Fixture: game or match.
Level: even. If two teams are drawing with eachother in a match, they are ‘level.’ If two teams have the same number of points in a league, they are ‘level’ on points.
Pace: the speed at which a player moves. If he lacks ‘pace,’ he is slow, but if he has great ‘pace,’ he is fast.
Pitch: the field of play.
Quality: how good or bad something is. For example, if a player produces a ‘quality’ effort on goal, his shot was good. If a player’s shot lacks ‘quality,’ his effort has not been up to standard.
Table: league. If a team is top of the ‘table,’ they are league leaders.
Tie: a match or game in an eliminating competition.
