Listening Practice: The Euros 2016 – Group F

The Euro 2016 competition is well underway and it is time to take a look at the last of the groups. Group F. In this group areA Austria,A Hungary,A Iceland, andA Portugal,A and ita€™s hard to pick a clear favourite. Listen to the report by clicking below, while explanations of key vocabulary (in bold) can be found at the bottom of the post. Euro 2016 Preview - GroupA F [TABLE=490] Portugal Top ranked in EuropeA Portugal are the bookies favourites to top this group, just above Austria, and with Christiano Ronaldo, CR7, in their ranks, they will always be a threat, particularly if they make it to the knock out stages. Last time out, they went to the semis, to be beaten by Spain who went on to be champions. They haveA a strong defence with Carvalho, Pepe and Alves, but theyA will rely on CR7 to provide the magic. Austria Quietly confidentA The Austrians are many peoplea€™s dark horses for the tournament and as they are ranked 10th in the FIFA world rankings they cana€™t be dismissed. They are well organised and can be deadly on the break,A withA ArnautovicA andA Janko both a dangerA A They qualified top of their group and will prove tricky opponents for all in group F. Hungary UnderdogsA Hungary may struggle to get out of the group. It has been many years since the glory days of the Magic Magyars ofA the 1950sand this is the first time since 1986 that they have appeared in a major tournament. Their Habsburg derby agains Austria in the opener should be an intriguing tie. look out forA Tamas Priskin, who could be a handful up front. Iceland Minnows?A Iceland have done amazingly well to get to the final stages of the competition. With a population of only 330,000, they are by far the smallest nation taking part, a true Euro minnow, and their cold, rugged country is not one usually associated with football. They will be many fans second team in this tournament and may be the surprise package in this group.A Eidur Gudjohnsen, aA veteran striker at 37, will be hoping his experience can help the IcelandicA team progress. Prediction This one really is too close to call. Portugal should top the group, but expect Austria to push them hard. Iceland could shock many by grabbing third, which would mean Hungary missing out. Let us know which countries you think will qualify by posting a comment below. You can also play in our Euro 2016 predictions competition - click here for more information Vocabulary ranks:A (in this context) team, squad on the break:A counter-attacking; attacking quickly from defence tricky opponents: difficult/dangerous opposition a handful:A difficult to control; difficult to keep quiet surprise package:A a team that surprises a lot of people   If you want to know more about a particular area of football language leave a comment below. You can also subscribe here to receive our selection of football clichés and of course you can check out our huge list of football vocabulary here.