Emiliano Martínez: Ten Years of Waiting
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EN: The phrasal verb 'grow up' (past tense: 'grew up') is an intransitive verb meaning to gradually become an adult. It does not take a direct object, but is often followed by prepositional phrases indicating location or circumstances.
She grew up in a small town near the coast.
EN: Nested prepositional phrases ('in a very poor family in Mar del Plata, Argentina') are used to provide layered details. The first 'in' indicates the social/economic environment, while the second 'in' specifies the geographical location.
They live in a modern apartment in Tokyo, Japan.
EN: Mar del Plata is a major city on the Atlantic coast of Argentina. While famous as a tourist beach resort for middle-class Argentines, it also contains working-class neighborhoods where families like Martínez's faced significant economic hardships, especially during the Argentine economic crises of the late 1990s and early 2000s. His nickname 'Dibu' comes from an Argentine animated television character ('Dibujito') because of his freckles and red hair when he was young.
EN: The conjunction 'as' is used here to mean 'at the same time that' or 'while', introducing a subordinate clause of time. It connects two actions that happened simultaneously in the past.
She waved goodbye as the train pulled out of the station.
EN: The preposition 'for' is used to indicate destination or direction, especially after verbs of movement or departure like 'leave', 'depart', or 'set off'.
We are leaving for Paris tomorrow morning.
EN: This sentence highlights a common but difficult path for young South American football talents. Many, like Martínez, are scouted at a very young age and must leave their families and culture behind to move to Europe (in this case, London to join Arsenal) to pursue their professional dreams, facing immense loneliness and pressure.
EN: Noun Clause as Object: The verb 'believed' is followed by a noun clause acting as its direct object. The conjunction 'that' is omitted here, which is very common in informal and spoken English (i.e., 'he believed [that] his big chance...').
She believed the project would succeed.
EN: Future in the Past (would + base verb): Since the main verb 'believed' is in the past tense, the future action from that past perspective is expressed using 'would' instead of 'will'.
They hoped that they would win the match.
EN: In professional football (soccer), moving to a massive club in London (like Arsenal) at a young age is a dream for many South American players, but it also comes with immense pressure, isolation, and a highly competitive environment where breakthrough opportunities are rare.
EN: The preposition 'about' can be followed by a gerund phrase acting as its object. In this sentence, 'his chance coming so quickly' is a gerund phrase where 'coming' is the gerund (noun-like verb) and 'his chance' acts as the subject of the gerund (possessive or objective case can be used, though possessive is more formal).
She was worried about her dog getting lost in the park.
EN: The adjective 'wrong' is often followed by the preposition 'about' to specify the subject or matter in which someone is mistaken or incorrect.
I was wrong about the meeting time; it actually starts at three.
EN: The preposition 'for' is used to indicate a duration of time, showing how long an action or situation lasts. It is often paired with time expressions like 'ten years', 'two hours', or 'a long time'.
She lived in London for five years before moving to Paris.
EN: The phrasal verb 'wait for' is used when someone remains inactive or expectant until a specific event occurs or a person arrives. The preposition 'for' must precede the object of the waiting.
The passengers are waiting for the train to arrive.
EN: In professional football (soccer), backup goalkeepers often spend years on the bench or on loan to lower-division clubs before getting a chance at a top-tier club. Martínez's story is widely celebrated as an ultimate example of professional patience and resilience, culminating in his heroic performance for Argentina at the 2022 World Cup.
EN: The phrase 'send someone on loan' is a common sports idiom, particularly in association football (soccer). It means to temporarily transfer a player to another team, usually to gain playing experience or due to squad surplus, while the original club still holds their permanent contract.
The manager decided to send the young striker on loan to a championship club.
EN: The preposition 'to' is used here to indicate direction or destination of the loan ('to small clubs'), while the preposition 'in' indicates the location or category within which those clubs exist ('in the lower division').
She was transferred to a new branch in London.
EN: In European football (soccer), the 'loan system' is a vital developmental tool. Big clubs like Arsenal often sign young talents but send them to lower-division clubs (such as those in the English Football League Championship, League One, or League Two) where they can play regular first-team football and mature, rather than sitting on the bench in the Premier League.
EN: The past unreal conditional (often called the third conditional) is used to talk about imaginary situations in the past. Here, 'would have + past participle' (would have given up) expresses what would have happened in a hypothetical past situation, which is implied by the prepositional phrase 'under these difficult conditions' (acting as the 'if' clause: 'if they had been in these conditions').
Without your help, we would have lost the game.
EN: The phrasal verb 'give up' means to stop trying to do something or to surrender. In this sentence, it is used in its past participle form 'given up' after 'would have' to indicate the hypothetical action of quitting.
He was tired, but he refused to give up.
EN: The idiom 'take/seize something with both hands' means to eagerly and enthusiastically accept an opportunity when it is offered.
When she was offered the promotion, she took it with both hands.
EN: Compound predicate: A single subject ('he') performs two actions connected by the coordinating conjunction 'and' ('joined' and 'took'). The subject does not need to be repeated after 'and'.
He walked into the room and sat down on the sofa.
EN: Aston Villa is a historic English Premier League football club based in Birmingham. For Martínez, joining Aston Villa in 2020 was the turning point of his career, as it gave him the regular starting position he was denied at Arsenal, eventually leading to his international success with Argentina.
EN: The linking verb 'become' (past tense 'became') is used to describe a change of state. It is followed by a noun phrase acting as a subject complement ('a true national hero') to describe what the subject ('Martínez') has become.
After years of hard work, she became a successful doctor.
EN: Prepositional phrases of time and place, such as 'At the 2022 World Cup', can be placed at the very beginning of a sentence for emphasis or to set the scene. When placed at the start, they are usually followed by a comma.
In the final minutes of the game, the team scored the winning goal.
EN: At the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Emiliano 'Dibu' Martínez played a monumental role in Argentina's victory. His last-minute save against France's Randal Kolo Muani in extra time and his subsequent heroics in the penalty shootout cemented his status as a legendary figure in Argentine football history, bringing immense national pride to the country.
EN: The Superlative Adjective ('the most famous'): Superlative adjectives are used to describe an object which is at the upper or lower limit of a quality (the most, the least). For adjectives with two or more syllables (like 'famous'), we typically use 'the most' before the adjective.
This is the most beautiful painting in the gallery.
EN: Prepositional Phrases of Time and Place ('In the final seconds of extra time', 'in history'): Prepositional phrases function as modifiers. 'In the final seconds of extra time' acts as an adverbial phrase of time, setting the scene at the beginning of the sentence, while 'in history' post-modifies the noun 'save'.
In the last minutes of the game, she scored the winning goal.
EN: This sentence refers to the legendary save by Argentinian goalkeeper Emiliano 'Dibu' Martínez in the 123rd minute of the 2022 FIFA World Cup final against France. Denying Randal Kolo Muani's shot, it is widely considered one of the most dramatic and important saves in football history, which ultimately led Argentina to win the tournament.
EN: The verb 'star' is used here as an intransitive verb meaning 'to play the most outstanding or prominent part'. It is commonly followed by the preposition 'in' to indicate the event or activity where the person performed exceptionally well.
The young midfielder starred in the championship match last night.
EN: The infinitive phrase 'to win the game' functions as an adverbial of result or purpose. In this context, it expresses the ultimate outcome of his outstanding performance in the shootout.
She trained hard all year to break the national record.
EN: In association football (soccer), a 'penalty shootout' is a dramatic tie-breaking method used to determine the winner of a match that remains drawn after extra time. Goalkeepers face immense pressure during shootouts, and Martínez's psychological tactics and incredible saves in the 2022 World Cup final shootout made him a legendary figure in Argentina.
EN: The adverb 'proudly' is used to modify the verb 'won'. In English, adverbs of manner (describing how something is done) can be placed before the main verb to emphasize the subject's feeling or manner during the action.
She happily accepted the job offer.
EN: The coordinating conjunction 'and' is used here to connect two independent clauses ('He proudly won the Golden Glove' and 'Argentina won the cup') of equal grammatical rank, forming a compound sentence.
The sun set, and the stars came out.
EN: In association football (soccer), the 'Golden Glove' is an award presented to the best goalkeeper of a tournament, such as the FIFA World Cup. Winning 'the cup' refers to winning the FIFA World Cup Trophy, the ultimate prize in international football, which Argentina won in 2022 for the third time in their history.
Key vocabulary words with IPA pronunciation, definitions, example sentences, and interactive quizzes.
Phrases with type tags, bilingual definitions, usage notes, and example sentences.
Borrowed or hired, especially of a sports player temporarily playing for another team
To stop trying to do something; to surrender or quit
To eagerly and enthusiastically seize an opportunity when it is presented
An additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to decide a winner when a game is tied
A method of deciding a tied match in which players from each team take turns taking penalty kicks at the goal