5:10
阿森纳的 22 年：从差一点到冠军
Arsenal's 22-Year Climb — From Near-Misses to Champions
This is an HSK 3-4 Chinese listening episode that runs about 5 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 12 key vocabulary words such as 比赛、经验、改变 and walks through 4 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.
5 月 19 号，星期一。
May 19, Monday.
英国伦敦的早上。
A London morning.
所有的报纸，头条都是同一件事：
Every newspaper, the same front page:
阿森纳是冠军了。
Arsenal are champions.
如果你不看足球，
If you don't follow football,
这只是一个普通的新闻。
this is just an ordinary news story.
如果你看足球，
If you follow football,
这是 22 年来最大的事。
this is the biggest thing in 22 years.
阿森纳是英超 (英国最高一级足球联赛) 的一个老牌球队。
Arsenal are an old club in the Premier League (England's top football division).
他们前一次拿冠军，
The last time they were champions,
还是 2003-2004 年。
was back in 2003–2004.
那个赛季，
That season,
他们一场没有输。
they didn't lose a single match.
英国人叫他们"不败队"。
The English called them "the Invincibles."
但是从那以后，
But after that,
阿森纳就再也没有拿过英超冠军。
Arsenal never won the Premier League again.
这中间，
During that time,
他们换了很多教练。
they changed many managers.
换了很多球员。
They changed many players.
钱也花了不少。
They spent a lot of money.
但是冠军，
But the title,
就是拿不到。
they just couldn't get.
为什么？
Why?
因为英超不容易。
Because the Premier League is hard.
过去十几年，
Over the past dozen years,
有一个队特别厉害，
there was a team that was especially strong,
叫曼城。
called Manchester City.
曼城有一个西班牙教练，
Man City has a Spanish manager,
叫瓜迪奥拉。
named Pep Guardiola.
他来了以后，
After he arrived,
曼城一直是冠军。
Man City kept winning the title.
七年里，
In seven years,
他们拿了六次。
they won it six times.
阿森纳一直在追，
Arsenal kept chasing,
一直没追上。
and kept not catching up.
直到这一年。
Until this year.
这一年，
This year,
阿森纳的主教练叫阿尔特塔。
Arsenal's manager is named Arteta.
阿尔特塔以前也在阿森纳踢球。
Arteta also used to play for Arsenal.
2019 年的时候，
In 2019,
他来当教练。
he came in as manager.
他来的时候，
When he arrived,
阿森纳并不强。
Arsenal weren't strong.
排在第八、第九。
They were 8th, 9th.
连欧洲比赛都进不去。
They couldn't even get into European competition.
阿尔特塔慢慢地建。
Arteta slowly built it up.
他卖掉了一些球员。
He sold some players.
买了一些年轻人。
He bought some young ones.
萨卡、厄德高、赖斯、萨利巴——
Saka, Ødegaard, Rice, Saliba —
这些名字，今天的球迷都熟悉。
those are names every Arsenal fan today knows.
他用了五年。
He spent five years.
中间有两次差一点拿冠军。
Twice along the way they came close to the title.
但是最后都是曼城拿走了。
But each time Man City took it.
球迷难过，
The fans were sad,
阿尔特塔自己也难过。
Arteta was sad too.
但是他没有放弃。
But he didn't give up.
今年是第六年。
This year was his sixth.
阿森纳从一开始就打得很稳。
Arsenal played steadily from the start.
赢的比赛多，
Won lots of matches,
输的比赛少。
lost very few.
对曼城，他们也赢了。
Against Man City, they won too.
最后两场之前，
Before the final two matches,
阿森纳已经在第一了。
Arsenal were already first.
他们的分比曼城多几分。
Their points were several ahead of Man City.
5 月 18 号，星期日，
On May 18, Sunday,
阿森纳和一个叫伯恩利的队比。
Arsenal played a team called Burnley.
阿森纳 1 比 0 赢。
Arsenal won 1–0.
这个时候，
At this point,
冠军还不是确定的。
the title wasn't yet decided.
要看曼城下一场怎么样。
It depended on Man City's next match.
5 月 19 号，
On May 19,
曼城去客场打伯恩茅斯。
Man City traveled to Bournemouth.
伯恩茅斯不是大队。
Bournemouth isn't a big team.
所有人都觉得曼城会赢。
Everyone thought Man City would win.
但是足球就是这样。
But that's football for you.
伯恩茅斯先进球。
Bournemouth scored first.
后来曼城追平。
Then Man City equalized.
最后 1 比 1。
Final 1–1.
曼城没有赢。
Man City did not win.
这一下，
With that,
曼城就没办法追上阿森纳了。
Man City could no longer catch Arsenal.
还有一场比赛，
There was still one match left,
但是分数差太多。
but the points gap was too big.
阿森纳是冠军了。
Arsenal are champions.
英国的电视、报纸、网站，
England's TV, papers, websites,
一下子都是阿森纳。
all of it became Arsenal at once.
阿森纳的球迷，
Arsenal's fans
在伦敦的街上哭，
cried in the streets of London,
在酒吧里抱在一起。
hugged each other in pubs.
有的球迷，
Some fans
是从他们的爸爸那里学会爱阿森纳的。
had learned to love Arsenal from their fathers.
他们的爸爸已经不在了。
Their fathers are no longer with them.
他们抱着自己的孩子说：
They held their own children and said:
"我们终于等到了。
"We finally got there.
阿尔特塔在采访里说：
In an interview, Arteta said:
"这不是我一个人做的。
"This isn't something I did alone.
"是所有人的功劳。
"It's everyone's work.
"球员、球迷、还有以前帮过我们的所有人。
"The players, the fans, and everyone who ever helped us before.
"我们等了 22 年。
"We waited 22 years.
"现在我们做到了。
"Now we did it.
那曼城呢？
What about Man City?
曼城的教练瓜迪奥拉说：
Man City's manager Guardiola said:
"阿森纳今年应得的。
"Arsenal deserved this year.
"我们要看看自己怎么变好。
"We need to look at how we get better.
这种话，
This kind of talk,
他以前很少说。
he rarely said before.
因为他以前是赢家。
Because he used to be the winner.
但是这一次，
But this time,
他输了。
he lost.
不过，
Still,
阿森纳的故事还没有完。
Arsenal's story isn't over.
5 月 30 号，
On May 30,
他们要去匈牙利的布达佩斯。
they'll travel to Budapest, Hungary.
那里有一个更大的比赛，
There's an even bigger match there,
叫欧洲冠军联赛决赛。
called the Champions League final.
他们要和法国的巴黎圣日耳曼比。
They'll face Paris Saint-Germain of France.
如果阿森纳赢了，
If Arsenal win,
他们就是欧洲第一。
they'll be the kings of Europe.
那是他们队历史上从来没有过的事。
That's something the club has never done in its history.
如果他们输了，
If they lose,
英超冠军也已经足够。
the Premier League title is already enough.
这个新闻让我想：
This news made me think:
22 年是多长？
how long is 22 years?
22 年里，
In 22 years,
中国的手机从功能机变成了智能手机。
phones in China went from feature phones to smartphones.
中国从世界第六大经济体，
China went from the world's 6th-largest economy
变成了第二。
to the 2nd.
有的孩子，从婴儿长成了大人。
Some babies grew up into adults.
22 年，
22 years
是一个完整的故事。
is a complete story.
阿森纳的这 22 年，
Arsenal's 22 years
是体育的故事。
is a sports story.
但是它告诉我们的，
But what it tells us
不只是体育。
isn't only about sports.
它告诉我们：
It tells us:
如果你真的喜欢一件事，
if you really love something,
不要因为输了就走。
don't leave just because you've lost.
总有一天，
One day,
你的那一年会到。
your year will come.
好。
Okay.
今天就说到这里。
That's all for today.
明天再聊。
Talk tomorrow.
A match, a game. 一场比赛 = one match. Throughout the episode the entire weight of 22 years compresses into the last two 比赛.
Experience. The hidden subtext of why this year succeeded where 2022–23 and 2023–24 didn't — the team finally had the 经验 to close out.
To change. The mentality 改变 (changed) — the squad stopped losing in the matches that mattered.
To accept. Guardiola's surprisingly humble line — accepting that Arsenal deserved this year.
Chance, opportunity. The Champions League final on May 30 is another 机会, even if the season's main 机会 has already been taken.
Finally, at long last. The exact emotional register of the episode — '终于' is what every Arsenal fan said on May 19.
Head coach. Arteta is the 主教练. Without 主, 教练 (coach) is the more general term; 主教练 is specifically the head man.
A sports fan. 22 年的等待 isn't really about the team — it's about the 球迷 who showed up every Sunday.
Champion. 冠 (crown) + 军 (force). The single word the whole 22-year wait was about.
The final. The Champions League 决赛 vs PSG, still to come on May 30 in Budapest.
A press interview. 阿尔特塔在采访里说 — in his post-match interview, Arteta said... A standard news word.
Credit (for an achievement). Arteta deflects: 是所有人的功劳 — the credit belongs to everyone.
* beyond level超纲词
差一点 + V
差一点 marks an action that nearly happened (and usually didn't). Arsenal 差一点拿冠军 twice in a row. A whole emotional register of 'so close' lives in this phrase.
中间有两次差一点拿冠军。
差一点就赢了。
直到 X
直到 = until. Often paired with 'X 才 Y' (didn't Y until X). The episode pivots on it — 直到这一年 — until this year. Marks the moment a long pattern finally breaks.
阿森纳一直在追，一直没追上。直到这一年。
直到 2025-26 赛季，他们才拿到冠军。
对 X，Y
Compact topic-marker structure. 对曼城，他们也赢了 — against Man City, they also won. Used in the episode to enumerate which rivals Arsenal beat.
对曼城，他们也赢了。
对利物浦两场，阿森纳全没输。
没办法 + V
没办法 = no way (to do something). 曼城就没办法追上阿森纳了 — Man City has no way left to catch Arsenal. Marks an impossibility, not just a difficulty.
曼城就没办法追上阿森纳了。
他没办法回家了。