opening whistle(The nadir came in the MLS Cup Final, when a gaffe in front of his net led to a Portland goal just 27 seconds after the opening whistle. VLZ_58)
get off to a flyer(Now, this week's English for football is the expression off to a flyer. Now we usually use this with the verb ‘get'. So, get off to a flyer. And it simply means that a team has started a match or the season very well indeed at a very early stage. So, for example this year in the Premier League Manchester City, Everton, and Chelsea have won both of their first two games, so we can say they've got off to a flyer. aldrignedigen)