A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
世界杯八强赛：阿根廷加时三比一淘汰瑞士进四强
World Cup Quarter-Final: Argentina Beat Switzerland 3-1 in Extra Time
About this story
An easy Chinese listening lesson on the World Cup quarter-finals: Mac Allister's early goal, Ndoye's equalizer, and then two extra-time goals against 10-man Switzerland send holders Argentina through 3-1. HSK 2 vocabulary on a defensive wall, a red card, and a champion's run.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 2 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 7 key vocabulary words such as 八强赛、卫冕冠军、纪律 and walks through 3 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Today we're talking about a World Cup quarter-final: Argentina beat Switzerland three to one in extra time.
Argentina didn't win this game easily either.
First, a word on Argentina.
Argentina are the champions from the last World Cup, with the superstar Messi on the team.
Now a word on Switzerland.
Switzerland are a very disciplined team, especially good in defense.
In the last round, they knocked out Colombia in a penalty shootout.
Alright, let's look at the game.
Not long after kickoff, Argentina scored first.
In the tenth minute, Mac Allister scored — one to zero.
Argentina led early.
But Switzerland didn't give up, defending tenaciously throughout.
In the sixty-seventh minute, Switzerland's Ndoye took his chance and leveled it — one to one.
For the rest of the game, both teams wanted to score again, but all the way to the end of ninety minutes it was still one to one.
So the two teams played extra time.
In extra time, a Switzerland player was sent off, leaving them with ten men.
A man down, defending became even harder for Switzerland.
In the one-hundred-and-twelfth minute, Álvarez scored again for Argentina — two to one.
Near the end, Lautaro scored another — three to one.
In the end, Argentina won the game three to one and reached the semi-finals.
So, how should we view this game?
For Argentina, this is a crucial win.
As defending champions, they came through once again, marching on toward the title.
Even Messi said Argentina's run this time has been extraordinary.
For Switzerland, losing is of course a shame.
They played very tenaciously, and even leveled the score for a while.
Only after going a man down did they slowly fall to a disadvantage.
But reaching the quarter-finals is already their own piece of history.
That's Argentina three to one Switzerland, a win that belonged to the defending champions.
See you next match.
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇决出最后八强之后的比赛。这是一场世界杯的八强赛。
上一届的冠军、这届来卫冕的球队。阿根廷是卫冕冠军。
大家都守规矩、按要求做。瑞士是一支很有纪律的球队。
把落后的比分追成一样。恩多耶扳平了比分。
因犯规被裁判罚出场。瑞士有一名球员被罚下场。
开始处于劣势、被压制。少打一人之后，瑞士才慢慢落了下风。
普通、平常。连梅西都说，这一路太不寻常了。
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法才…就…
'As soon as …, then …' — something happens very early.
比赛才开始不久，阿根廷就先进了一个球。
少了一个人，…就更难了
'A man down, … becomes harder' — a disadvantage.
少了一个人，瑞士守起来就更难了。
连…都说…
'Even … says …' — emphasis via an authority.
连梅西都说，阿根廷这一路太不寻常了。
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