人教全日制普通高中英语（必修）高三UNIT16-1

Little David was football crazy. He spent all his spare time kicking a ball in the school playground or on the streets near his east London home. Like millions of boys and an increasing number of girls, he dreamt of being a professional football player. He was a Manchester United supporter and he wanted to wear the red shirt and score goals at the famous Old Trafford Stadium in front of thousands of cheering fans.
 
While he was still a schoolboy, he attended training sessions¹ with a London club, and then at the age of sixteen, he was invited to join Manchester United as a trainee². David's career took off almost immediately when he was part of the Manchester United's Youth Team that Won the FA Youth Cup in 1992, and he was chosen to play for the Red Devils³' senior team in the same year. It was the beginning of an extraordinary career.
 
       Now David is England's most famous mid-field player and a world superstar. Every time he plays football he is watched by thousands of adoring⁴ Becks fans all over the world. David Beckham accomplished⁵ his aim, but what about all the other children with the same dream? How
can they achieve their ambition?
 
       Football is different from most careers because employers⁶ do not advertise that they have a vacant⁷ job in the newspapers or on the Internet. There are no application forms or interviews. Instead the employers -- the football clubs -- find players with the right abilities and offer them employment⁸.
 
       The clubs look for young footballers with particular qualities and, most importantly, talent. Professional footballers have to be very, very good, and to play for a leading club they must be outstanding. Top players must have excellent ball control and understand how to use the space on the pitch, but it is not just what they do with their feet that counts. Club managers also want every footballer to have good team spirit, a strong character, mental strength and a positive attitude.
 
       Many countries have set up programmes to encourage and develop young footballers, and this is where the clubs go to assess⁹ athletes and find stars of the future. China has special football schools where children acquire ball skills as well as a formal education. In the UK the clubs send scouts¹⁰ around the country to discover talented boys and girls. These scouts watch hundreds of matches played by school teams in villages, towns and cities. When they spot young people with talent, they invite them to train with the club. If the players are under sixteen, they still go to school but take part in club training sessions in the evenings and play in the junior team at weekends. Those that are good enough then become youth trainees¹¹ at the age of sixteen and join the club as a paid member of staff. During this time they receive football instruction and play for the youth team, but it is not an easy life. There is a lot of competition for places on the team. The salary is low and the job includes cleaning the changing rooms, toilets and senior colleagues' boots. The trainees also go to college one day a week where they study other characteristics of the football industry such as pitch maintenance¹² and office administration¹³.
 
       After two years, only a few trainees are good enough to go on to the next stage. These lucky ones are offered a contract with a club and their life as a professional footballer begins. From this point on the success of their career and how much they earn depend on their performance and how many matches their team wins. Perhaps, like Becks, one or two become great stars. However, football is such a fiercely competitive¹⁴ occupation, that many players are not successful and have to leave the profession to find other careers.
 
       When David Beckham was a child, he dreamt of playing for Manchester United. He achieved his ambition and made the red Number 7 shirt famous throughout the world. Now he is famous for his haircuts and lifestyle as well as for scoring goals. David's story has a happy ending, but most children with the same wish will never have the opportunity to wear their favourite team's shirt. Many of them will only play as amateur¹⁵ footballers in their spare time. Unfortunately football dreams do not often come true.

1 sessions   

n.（尤指法庭、议会等）开庭( session的名词复数 )；（自发或俱乐部的）聚会；会期；（进行某活动连续的）一段时间

参考例句：

• A few sessions talking to a counsellor should straighten him out. 跟辅道员谈几次就会使他改正过来的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The sessions will enable you to discuss problems with fellow asthma sufferers. 这些环节让你和其他哮喘病患者一起讨论问题。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 trainee   

n.受训练者

参考例句：

• The trainee checked out all right on his first flight.受训者第一次飞行完全合格。
• Few of the trainee footballers make it to the top.足球受训人员中没有几个能达到顶级水平。

3 devils   

魔鬼( devil的名词复数 )； 家伙； 淘气鬼； 冒失鬼

参考例句：

• They believed she was possessed by devils. 他们认为她是魔鬼附身。
• The poor devils have been stuck at the airport for three days. 那些可怜的家伙被困在机场已经三天了。

4 adoring   

a.崇拜的，敬慕的

参考例句：

• He would stand and gaze up at her with adoring eyes. 它会站在那里，用崇拜的眼光抬头望着芬。
• She was always made much of by her adoring friends. 她的朋友总是那麽崇拜她。

5 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

6 employers   

雇主( employer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Employers must consider all candidates impartially and without bias. 雇主必须公平而毫无成见地考虑所有求职者。
• The onus is on employers to follow health and safety laws. 雇主有义务遵行健康安全法。

7 vacant   

adj.未被占用的，空着的；空缺的

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• He stared into space with a vacant expression.他茫然地凝视着天空。

8 employment   

n.雇用；使用；工作，职业

参考例句：

• A large office requires the employment of many people.一个大办事处需要雇用好多人员。
• The state of employment in this city is improving.这个城市就业状况正在改善。

9 assess   

vt.对…进行估价；评价，评论

参考例句：

• They assess his house at 15000 yuan.他们给他房子的估价为15000元。
• We should equitably assess historical figures.我们应该公正地评价历史人物。

10 scouts   

侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员

参考例句：

• to join the Scouts 参加童子军
• The scouts paired off and began to patrol the area. 巡逻人员两个一组，然后开始巡逻这个地区。

11 trainees   

新兵( trainee的名词复数 )； 练习生； 接受训练的人； 训练中的动物

参考例句：

• We've taken on our full complement of new trainees. 我们招收的新学员已经满额了。
• The trainees were put through an assault course. 受训人员接受了突击训练课程。

12 maintenance   

n.维修，保养，扶养费，维持，保持

参考例句：

• His small farm provides maintenance,but not much more.他的小农场能使他们维持生活，但仅此而已。
• He has to pay maintenance to his ex-wife.他必须给前妻赡养费。

13 administration   

n.经营，管理；行政，行政机关，管理部门

参考例句：

• Who is in charge of the administration of your company?你们公司的行政工作由谁负责？
• The teachers are responsible to the school administration.教师向学校行政负责。

14 competitive   

adj.竞争的，比赛的，好竞争的，有竞争力的

参考例句：

• Some kinds of business are competitive.有些商业是要竞争的。
• These businessmen are both competitive and honourable.这些商人既有竞争性又很诚实。

15 amateur   

adj.业余的，非专业的；n.业余爱好者

参考例句：

• He made an amateur attempt to build a cupboard.他很外行地试做了一个碗柜。
• Although Tom's only an amateur he's a first-class player.虽然汤姆只是个业余爱好者，但却是一流的高手。