‘Fabio Capello has turned our Wags to witches’
Observer opinion piece
To Get you thinking
Look closely at the headline for this article.
Fabio Capello has turned our Wags into Witches.
•Which famous
phrase has been altered to create the
pun in the headline?
•What does the word ‘Wag’ stand for, in footballer
terms?
•Can you name some of the more famous ‘Wags’?
•What does the pun in the headline imply about
Fabio Capello and his actions?
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STUDY THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS
Read the first four paragraphs carefully
PEN / HIGHLIGHTER AT THE READY
As you read the first four paragraphs,
be ready to ANNOTATE
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• What is the main point of the writer’s
argument?:
read each of the first four paragraphs
and against each one
write just a short phrase
which sums up the main points
the writer is making.
(1) How bizarre, not to mention chauvinist, of
England manager Fabio Capello to ban Wags from
Seeing much of their spouses during the
Forthcoming World Cup. Capello, whose default
Facial expression seems to say ‘I am sitting on a
Large rusty nail’ has curtailed the Wags’ visiting
rights to one day after matches, announcing:
‘We are in South Africa to play. It is not a holiday.’
(2) Fair enough, Fabio, but perhaps more
Appropriate to tell the players. Indeed, isn’t
Capello’s ban just a bizarre way for the team, even
the country, to slyly blame a bunch of women for
England’s 2006 World Cup defeat? As in, last time,
our players were so distracted by the ladies’
champagne swilling and hair straightening that
they could not play to the best of their ability?
Even squad prankster, king of the whoopee
cushion, Rio Ferdinand chimed in, saying the Wags
had turned the tournament into a ‘circus’.
(3) Which is strange. Some of us remember
England getting knocked out of the 2006
quarter-finals after a series of pathetic,
lumbering performances that would have made
a seaside donkey blush. There was also
the little matter of Wayne Rooney tap-dancing
on a Portuguese player’s groin, reducing England
to 10 men.
(4) Moreover, while one recalls the Wags spending
in the boutiques of Baden-Baden, and drinking in
bars, one doesn’t remember them actually playing
on the pitch, letting in any goals or missing any
penalties. Odd then, how an all-male sporting
defeat should now be recalled in terms of all
female blame. Then again, maybe not so odd.
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What sentence type does
the writer use to make a firm start?
•
•
•
•
Scan and underline each opening sentence
Is there a pattern?
What is the type of sentence used?
Why – what is the impact on the reader?
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By using the phrase,
‘Fair enough, Fabio’
in paragraph 2,
what tone does the writer
seem to adopt?
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What is the effect of the
adverb ‘slyly’
in paragraph 2?
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• By describing the Wags as ‘champagne
swilling’ and ‘hair straightening’, what does
the writer imply about them?
• When she describes Rio Ferdinand as ‘king of
the whoopee cushion’, what does it tell you
about her attitude towards him?
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• How does the sentence ‘Which is strange.’
(paragraph 3) suggest a change of tone.
• Does it imply that the writer is going to agree
with Capello’s decision or not?
Now look closely at the techniques the writer uses to argue her point
of view, and complete this table.
TECHNIQUE
Comparison
Rhetorical Question
Humour
Colloquialism
EXAMPLE FROM TEXT
How is it used to add weight
to the argument?
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As the writer draws her argument to a close she
states a fact: ‘The last time England won the
World Cup was famously 1966.’
• Why do you think the writer chooses to use
this fact?
• How does it add weight to the argument?
Applying and consolidating
your learning
‘The last time we looked, the England players were
supposed to be professionals, the best we have.
Therefore, presumably what occurs during
professional sporting tournaments is down to them
and them alone.’
With what suggestion is the writer concluding her
article?
Applying and consolidating
your learning
• Make a list of ALL the writing techniques the
writer has used in her progress towards this
concluding suggestion.