Practice English with NewsPractice with News
Sports148 words1 min read

Manchester United's Long Decline: From Ferguson's Horse to Today's Struggles

a stadium with a green field and red seats
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Listen to the story

Manchester United is a famous football club in England.

A writer named Jonathan Wilson wrote a new article about the club.

The article says the club's problems started with a horse.

The horse belonged to Sir Alex Ferguson. He was the club's old manager.

Ferguson was a very successful manager. He won many games and trophies.

But the article says the horse caused some problems for the club.

Since Ferguson left, Manchester United has not won as much.

Some people say it is now one of the worst-run clubs in Europe.

The club's new manager is Erik ten Hag.

He talked about the team in a new interview.

Ten Hag spoke about using data to help the team.

He also talked about young player Mainoo. People say Mainoo is special.

Old players have also criticized the club.

Many fans want the club to do better.

Vocabulary9 words

club
a sports team and its organization
article
a piece of writing in a newspaper
manager
the person who leads a sports team
successful
doing very well; winning a lot
trophies
prizes given for winning
interview
when someone answers questions for the news
data
numbers and facts used to understand something
player
a person who plays in a sports team
criticized
said bad things about someone or something

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Quiz

1. What is the article mainly about?
2. Who owned the horse in the story?
3. Who is the current manager mentioned in the article?

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Fill-in-the-blank listening

Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.

Manchester United is a famous football _____ in England.

A writer named Jonathan Wilson wrote a new _____ about the club.

The article says the club's problems started with a _____.

The horse belonged to Sir Alex Ferguson. He was the club's old _____.

Ferguson was a very _____ manager. He won many games and _____.

The club's new manager is Erik ten Hag.

He talked about the team in a new _____.

Ten Hag spoke about using _____ to help the team.

Old players have also _____ the club.

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