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曼徹斯特聯足球俱樂部（Manchester United）考慮通過分發歌詞單以及派拉拉隊員手舉擴音器指揮觀眾的形式來調動比賽的氣氛，后者多見于歐洲大陸的球場上。俱樂部主教練何塞·穆里尼奧（Jose Mourinho）此前說過，曼聯主賽場老特拉福德球場（Old Trafford）的觀眾們“過于安靜”。請聽報道。

Football songs or chants are mysterious – it's never clear exactly how they begin, but it is obvious when they stop. The sound of silence has been bothering Manchester United. Their manager, Jose Mourinho, recently described the Old Trafford crowd as 'quiet'.

Now United are considering ways to stimulate the atmosphere, with a full update promised in May. A kind of cheerleader with a loudhailer to conduct the crowd is one idea set to be presented to fans. A more radical but apparently less likely option is to hand out lyric sheets to supporters when they enter the stadium.

Some songs can be witty, honed specifically to celebrate a certain player or a moment in a club's history. Others rely more on a hypnotic repetition of syllables 'u-ni-ted', for example. 

The decline in singing maybe explained by changing demographics in football attendance, older supporters, more expensive tickets or by stadium design. All-seater arenas may discourage the instinct to stand up and sing. But the balance is also important.

Under Jose Mourinho, Manchester United have been playing functional but unspectacular football. So, do the fans inspire the players or is it the other way round?

足球場頌歌和助威歌很神秘 — 這類歌曲的真正起源從未被人知曉，但它們成為明日黃花的時日卻顯而易見。曼徹斯特聯足球俱樂部（簡稱“曼聯”）正在因安靜的球場氣氛而備受困擾。主教練何塞·穆里尼奧（Jose Mourinho）最近稱老特拉福德球場的觀眾們“安靜”。

現在，曼聯正在考慮用不同的方法活躍現場氣氛，并保證會在五月做出全面更新。其中一種展現給球迷們的新方式是：派類似于拉拉隊員的工作人員在場內手舉擴音器并指揮現場觀眾唱歌。另一種全然不同卻顯然不大可能被采用的選擇是在球迷進場時分發寫有歌詞的紙張。

有一些歌曲風趣詼諧，而且特地為慶祝某位球員或某足球俱樂部的歷史瞬間而精心編寫而成。還有一些歌曲則憑借有催眠作用的重復性音節來達到效果，比如強調俱樂部名稱的音節：“u-ni-ted”。

唱足球助威歌這一現象之所以減少，可能是由于看球的特定人群發生了變化，即球迷年齡和票價的增長，也可能是球場設計的影響。全座位式球場也許會抑制人們起身歌唱的本能。不過在變化中找到合適的平衡也很重要。

自從穆里尼奧帶領曼聯以來，該球隊的風格一直注重實用，卻趨于平庸。那么，到底是球迷激勵了球員還是恰恰相反呢？

1. 詞匯表

chants 頌歌，這里指足球球迷們的助威歌
mysterious 神秘的
bothering 讓…擔心、煩惱
stimulate 使…活躍，助興
atmosphere 氣氛
loudhailer 擴音器、電喇叭
conduct 指揮（合唱）
radical 全新的，與以往完全不同的
witty 機智風趣的
honed 精心編寫的
hypnotic 有催眠暗示效果的
demographics（特定的）人群
instinct 本能
functional 實用性的
unspectacular 平庸、沒有特色的

2. 閱讀理解：請在讀完上文后，回答下列問題 。

1. How has Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, described the sound of fans at a home game?

2. Which idea being proposed is unlikely to be adopted by fans?

3. True or false? Having to sit down may discourage people chanting and singing.

4. What does the reporter mean by "do the fans inspire the players or is it the other way round?"

3. 答案

1. How has Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, described the sound of fans at a home game?
He said they were 'quiet'.

2. Which idea being proposed is unlikely to be adopted by fans?
A more radical but apparently less likely option is to hand out lyric sheets to supporters when they enter the stadium.

3. True or false? Having to sit down may discourage people chanting and singing.
True. All-seater arenas may discourage the instinct to stand up and sing.

4. What does the reporter mean by "do the fans inspire the players or is it the other way round?"
He means singing and chanting from the fans may inspire the players to play better.  But alternatively, if the players played better, it might encourage the fans to sing more.