IRELAND’S assistant soccer manager, the legendary ex-Italian international Marco Tardelli, has revealed the secrets of his quest to learn English: subtitles.
Tardelli, famous for his cathartic goal celebration in the 1982 World Cup Final and a five-time Serie A champion, commented: “I started to study English watching television with the subtitles, and after two months, three months, I got rid of the subtitles. Some things I understand – the sound, the sense, the meaning.”
The Italian, who became Irish manager Giovanni Trapattoni’s assistant in February 2008, insisted that learning English is “very important” for his job, in which he must interact with Irish footballers such as Robbie Keane, Damien Duff and Shay Given.
However, Tardelli conceded that although he uses English with fellow assistant Liam Brady (who played in Italy and is fluent in Italian), he employs his native language when conversing with compatriot and boss, Giovanni Trapattoni, who struggles with English.
“I speak English with Liam but not with Giovanni because we are Italian. Sometimes I speak with the players [in English], now I understand the players, the players understand me.”
Tardelli was speaking on a forthcoming community radio documentary series, How To Learn English in Ireland. The series is a collaborative project produced by Dublin South FM in association with Co Dublin VEC, Co Laois VEC and City of Dublin VEC.
Another interviewee, Edyta Szymanska from Wolin in northwest Poland, told Metro Éireann that listening to Irish radio was particularly helpful to her when learning English.
“I had basic English when I arrived in Ireland. I thought it would be enough to communicate, but here English is Irish-English – there is a different accent, you don’t say the whole words sometimes, there are a lot of shortcuts. This was the main difficulty for me.”
A sculptor who runs the Ceramics Studio with Chris Piekarz in Stradbally, Co Laois, Szymanska promptly “switched on the radio” to get accustomed to the accent, and also enrolled at an adult education centre in Portlaoise in order to further improve.
Surviving the recession, her business communicates with clients in Ireland, the UK and across Europe.
How To Learn English in Ireland will be broadcast on the following stations and dates:
Dublin City FM 103.2: Thursdays at 3.30pm from 10 September to 1 October (repeated Thursdays at 11am from 1-22 October)
Dublin South FM 93.9: Wednesdays at 4.30pm from 16 September to 7 October
West Dublin Access Radio 96.0: Mondays at 4pm from 14 September to 5 October
