Learn English Through Football

This football language podcast looks back at the first semi final of Euro 2020 between Spain and Italy. We focus on the midfield battle with the phrase ‘pull the strings’. You can read a transcript for this podcast below, while you can also check out our glossary of footballing phrases here and visit our site to access all our previous posts and podcasts. If you have any suggestions or questions then you can contact us at admin@languagecaster.com. (DB=Damon)
Pull the Strings – Football Language: Euro 2020 – 1st Semi Final
DB: You’re listening to languagecaster.com’s football language Euro 2020 podcast. Hello there everyone, my name’s Damon, one half of the languagecaster team and today I’ll be talking about some football language connected with the first semi final of Euro 2020. What a fantastic game, first of all! congratulations to Italy, who go through after penalties – full-time ended 1-1 and extra time was a stalemate. And commiserations to Spain, who were probably the best team on the night, but experienced the heartbreak of losing a penalty shoot out.
Spain certainly played brilliantly, as did Italy, and I want to kick off with the phrase ‘pull the strings‘.
Stinger: You are listening to languagecaster.com (Italian).
Pull the Strings
DB: Yes you are listening to languagecaster and our football language podcast and that message was in Italian.
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OK, to pull the strings: this means to control something. The strings are the strings of a puppet, a doll that moves according to how you pull its strings. This phrase is most often used to describe midfield players, as it is they who are usually in control of the ball. For Spain, a deep lying midfielder, like Busquest, or perhaps someone further forward, like Pedri, could pull the strings. And they did.
They dominated the ball and controlled the flow of the game – mostly. Spain had over 65% possession. This is how the Washington Post described Spain’s dominance: “With Barcelona phenomenon Pedri pulling the strings, the Spaniards knocked the ball around with ease, occasionally unlocking the Italy defense through smooth passing patterns.”
Another phrase similar to pull the strings is to run the game, and here is the Guardian on Pedri: “the brilliant 18-year-old midfielder who ran the game and completed 98% of his passes.”
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