2006年VOA标准英语-England, Sweden Favored in World Cup Group

By Steve Schy
Washington
17 May 2006

England and Sweden are expected to be the top two teams in Group B when the World Cup gets under way in Germany on June 9. But an injury to 20-year-old star England striker Wayne Rooney could shift the balance of power in a group that also includes Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago.

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England's Wayne Rooney celebrates after scoring an equalizer during friendly match with Argentina   
  

Wayne Rooney fractured his right foot playing for his English club team Manchester United in late April and could miss the entire World Cup. Rooney appears to be healing well and England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is still hoping the young star will be fit enough to play by some stage of the tournament. 
 

 
David Beckham
  

Even without Rooney, England has a strong squad¹, which includes players such as David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Michael Owen and Frank Lampard. International football expert commentator² Derek Rae sizes up Group B.

"England are the favorites and I would think it would be either Sweden or Paraguay fighting for the second spot," he says. "It would be a massive surprise if Trinidad and Tobago were to get out of the group."

England and Sweden are both hoping to clinch³ second round berths⁴ before they meet each other. They face Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago first, and wins against both would give them the six points they need to guarantee advancement⁵ to the knockout round. But Rae says Sweden will not make things easy for England.

"They have this dreadful record against Sweden," he explains. They haven't defeated them going back to 1968, that was the last time, and of course England are managed by a Swede in Sven-Goran Eriksson." 

Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic, center, shoots ball as Malta's Adrian Pulis, left, and Ivan Woods look on during World Cup 2006 qualifying match   
  
The experienced Swedish team has consistently been tough to beat early in the World Cup, gaining draws against both England and Argentina at the 2002 World Cup before losing to Senegal on an extra time "golden goal." The Swedes' attack is led by strikers Henrik Larsson of Spanish side FC Barcelona and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who plays for Italy's Juventus.

Germany is Paraguay's third straight World Cup, and it reached the second round in the last two, losing to eventual⁶ champion France in 1998 and to finalist Germany in 2002. The South American side plays England in its first match and Derek Rae says Paraguay will not be a pushover.

"Paraguay are England's first opponents and that could be a sticky proposition. They are a funny team, Paraguay; very dogged and well organized," he says. "They do not have too many stars. They will be hoping Roque Santa Cruz is ready to go come that first match in Frankfurt."

Bayern Munich striker Santa Cruz returned to action in April after being sidelined for five months with torn ligaments in his right knee.

Derek Rae says even lightly regarded teams like Trinidad and Tobago can be the source of a World Cup surprise.

"Trinadad and Tobago are the wild cards in the group," he notes. "Many people have speculated that they are simply there to enjoy themselves. But they do have some quality in their ranks. They have Dwight Yorke, of course, the Caribbean's most successful footballing export. And they have a very wiley coach in Dutchman Leo Beenhakker."

Yorke, a former striker for English clubs Aston Villa⁷ and Manchester United, was convinced to come out of retirement⁸ to help the island team reach its first World Cup by beating Bahrain in a playoff. Though he is joined by several experienced international players, most agree Trinidad and Tobago has little chance of making it to the second round.

1 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

2 commentator   

n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员

参考例句：

• He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
• The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。

3 clinch   

v.敲弯，钉牢；确定；扭住对方 [参]clench

参考例句：

• Clinch the boards together.用钉子把木板钉牢在一起。
• We don't accept us dollars,please Swiss francs to clinch a deal business.我方不收美元，请最好用瑞士法郎来成交生意。

4 berths   

n.（船、列车等的）卧铺( berth的名词复数 )；（船舶的）停泊位或锚位；差事；船台vt.v.停泊( berth的第三人称单数 )；占铺位

参考例句：

• Berths on steamships can be booked a long while in advance. 轮船上的床位可以提前多日预订。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Have you got your berths on the ship yet? 你们在船上有舱位了吗？ 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

6 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

7 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

8 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。