English

Mr Football The Mad FooTballer
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Gary watched as Matt gave the ball a powerful• kick. It rose high into the air. A tall blond-haired boy from the Manning High team ran across the football pitch•. He took control of the ball as it landed, but Gary was already there beside him. He raced past the blond player and caught the ball with his feet. There was a cry from the crowd•. ‘Gary! Gary! Gary!’ they chanted•. The score was nil• nil. There were just five minutes to go before the end of the match. Gary knew that every second counted. From the edge of the pitch, Karen screamed, ‘Come on, Gary. Come on!’ ‘We’ll never do it,’ said Joe. He was standing next to Karen in the middle of the shouting crowd of schoolchildren. ‘Manning High has the best players. Gary can’t beat Rick. Rick’s much stronger.’ Rick was running alongside• Gary. He intercepted• the ball and kicked it in the opposite direction. The crowd gave another roar. ‘See!’ said Joe. ‘Manning High has got the ball now. We’ll never win.’ A girl with long dark hair pushed through the crowd to join Karen and Joe. ‘Hurry up, Laura, you’re late,’ said Karen. ‘Sorry,’ said Laura, ‘I ran all the way from college. What’s happening?’ Before Karen could answer, Mr Hussain the referee• blew the whistle. y Glossar
• • • • • alongside: next to chanted: sang or shouted crowd: large group of people intercepted: stopped; caught nil: zero • pitch: place where people play football or other sports • powerful: strong • referee: person who makes sure the players follow the rules

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Mr Football ‘Is that it? Is the match finished?’ said Laura. ‘No, there’s a free kick for us,’ said Joe. ‘What’s that?’ said Laura. Joe rolled his eyes• and looked at Karen. ‘It’s our last chance to get a goal,’ said Karen. ‘But it isn’t going to happen,’ said Joe. ‘What a pessimist•!’ said Karen.

PESSIMISTS
How is Joe a pessimist? What do pessimists usually say and do? The opposite of a pessimist is an optimist. What are you? A