Learning from numbers 0
After Abdukodir Khusanov had a disastrous debut for himself for Manchester City - making a mistake that led to a goal and receiving a yellow card in the first 5 minutes, coach Pep Guardiola described it as "the best lesson he can learn". But the 20-year-old's language teacher may disagree.
When asked if he would consider replacing Khusanov at that time, Guardiola replied: " well, I have to learn Russian or Uzbek to communicate with him. He doesn't speak English."
On the same day, at the other end of England, another player who came to the Premier League without knowing which English word was enjoying the best moment of his career so far. Dango Ouattara, who joined Bournemouth two years ago, scored a hat-trick against Nottingham Forest.
Born in Burkina Faso, Ouattara moved to Bournemouth at the same time as Ivorian midfielder Hamed Traore, and both needed language help from the start. Bournemouth have found Mathieu Baudry, a native Frenchman who played for Bournemouth for about a decade. From Swindon Town, he received a call to join Bournemouth as an interpreter. For me, its not just a job, Baudry said, Since Ive been through it, I feel like Ive been helping them.
Both players, Baudry said, "start from zero" in English. Forget Duolingo or the GCSE program. Language lessons for players start with football terms, team nicknames and frequently used phrases by coaches. They also went to Sainsbury supermarket to discuss fruits and vegetables.
Students of different qualifications Claudia Madeley - the operator of Language Partners, has done all that and more during 15 years of teaching English to players, coaches and their families in the West Midlands. She even translated for the Brazilian and his partner in a delivery room.
Some players are excellent students. Lizzie Hider, whose Communicate Well company provides language teachers to 15 of the 20 Premier League clubs, is still surprised by Cesc Fabregas' approach to become proficient in English at Arsenal. "He was very determined and always asked to take extra classes," she said, "A person who was extremely intelligent to realize that he would be the key to everything - stability, playing well, connecting with the rest of the team, connecting with the Premier League".
Hider has taught a foreign player in the Premier League, who has challenged himself to read Da Vinci Code in English. Another person wanted to be confident enough to hold a newspaper that suffered a lot.
Riccardo Calafiori, a current Arsenal player, has had a smooth start. To sign a contract from
Bologna, Calafiori studied English on their own with impressive proficiency. The Italian has learned the basics in Pittsburgh while undergoing knee surgery as a teenager, the rest of it was thanks to a combination of listening to British music and watching Netflix, and being alongside a group of multinational players in Bologna and Basel.
English players leap foreign languages
There are teams in Europe where English is the unofficial language. Last week, Niko Kovac had his first meeting as head coach of Borussia Dortmund in English. Domenico Tedesco, an Italian who speaks six languages, communicates in English during meetings at RB Leipzig, and the same thing at St Pauli, another Bundesliga club.
The fact that English is so widely used is an excuse for English players, most of whom are poor at learning the language. Former midfielder Joe Cole admitted that he became a "Derek Trotter" when he signed for Lille. David Beckham struggled to put together a sentence in Spanish when playing for Real Madrid and Gareth Bale was not much better. For Harry Kane, the answer to the question at the Ballon d'Or awards ceremony in October about whether his German has improved has spoken it all. "No," the England captain replied.
In his first season at Real Madrid, Jude
Bellingham played great but admitted that he disappointed coach Carlo Ancelotti in one aspect. "How? , a reporter from Tuttosport asked, "I still can't speak Spanish," Bellingham replied. "I apologize but I am facing unexpected obstacles with this language. I admit it was difficult for me. In any case, I promise to commit to the maximum."
motivation to learn
However, in general, the message from clubs to any foreign player is that they will be much happier on and off the pitch if they can learn the language to the minimum level of communication - and also gain the respect of fans.
Chris Smalling, who was determined to learn Italian after moving to Roma from Manchester United in 2019, agreed. "The encouragement you get from the fans, from other players and from the staff, just makes you want to do it more," Smalling said, "My first interview in Italian, it took a long, not perfect time. A lot of mistakes. But I think fans can see that you are trying to integrate into their culture and community, and I think that will have a big impact."
Some players have great motivation. Bruno Guimaraes said that since he arrived at Newcastle, his goal has been to speak fluently. As for Emiliano Martinez, he just wants to get rich. I have a bonus in my contract because Arsene Wenger says you need to speak that language, the Aston Villa goalkeeper told the Premier Leagues Inside the Game. "Therefore, if I pass the test, they will give me 20,000 pounds. I told my teacher, Please, I need to pass this test!.
According to Hider, goalkeepers tend to become exemplary language learners - which she believes is due to "the autonomy of that position" and in fact they realize the importance of making "very clear requirements, limited time" for teammates.
Using an dich gia
Romelu Lukaku and Henrikh Mkhitaryan both speak 8 languages, but for many others, the learning curve is very steep. At that time, a translation was an option, although it was a rare attraction for clubs. When Terry Venables was Barcelona's manager in the 1980s, players who actually liked his interpreter, Graham Turner, conveyed their own feelings, not just a message. I had to give some criticism like Terry did, turned turned to The Times.
But that is not the way things go in Leeds, where players can see the pity in the eyes of the interpreter, along with the expression "Don't shoot the reporter" on their faces, after Marcelo Bielsa scolded them in Spanish.
Most foreign players in the Premier League who register will speak English well enough for 1 or 2 years to be able to handle and in some cases, they can pass the basic UK language test, allowing them to get a 3-year international sports visa when coming to this country. However, the initial visa is almost always 12 months.
Some Premier League clubs have included learning English as part of their recruitment process and have stipulated that a player must reach a certain level (for example, being able to answer interviews after a match) before they stop studying. However, in general, that approach is only effective when there is support...
