Idiomatic word/expression for someone ‘who has no feeling for the game’ - Translation of Spanish ‘pechofrío’

Question

I'm having trouble translating the expression pechofrío (pecho frío, ‘cold chest’) from Spanish—specially Argentinian Spanish, I don't know if it's used in other countries. It means:

s. masc. Persona sin sangre, que no muestra interés, brío ni entusiasmo en las situaciones en las que se requiere. Proviene de pecho + frío, por la idea de que esas personas no tienen el ardor en el pecho propio del entusiasmo. Ej.: Muchos tachan a Messi de pechofrío.

n. masc. A person ‘without blood’ who doesn't show any interest, brio or enthusiasm in situations where they are required. The word comes from ‘cold’ + ‘chest’ due to the belief that these individuals don't feel any ardor on their chest characteristic of enthusiasm. E.g.: A lot of people brand Messi as a ‘coldchest’?

The expression was used mainly in football contexts, but nowadays, people tend to use it in every informal situation—for someone who performs poorly in any kind of activity because can't engage enough.

I only found fainthearted (and could also consider coward depending on the context); but as I looked some examples I found these kind of terms are rather formal. Is this true? I'm looking for an idiomatic or slang expression that would suit in a (very) informal situation. With this sense, if I'm angry because a fellow are just not putting all the effort they should then I would say in Spanish: ‘¡No seas pechofrío!’. But if for example I complained ‘Don't be a fainthearted!’, would this sound too prude? Would my listener laugh and not take me seriously, thinking that I'm not ‘streetwise’? Is there some good idiomatic expression or word I could say in these kind of situations? What do you think about it?

Answer 1

If you want a slang expression for someone that is not putting in the required effort, or showing very little interest, I would say a good one is "half-ass." Please note this is considered vulgar in professional settings.

From Merriam-Webster's Dictionary:

slang, often vulgar: to do (something) poorly due to lack of care or effort

In moments where you see your son half-assing something, it's important to call him out to ensure he's putting forth his best effort. —Chris Illuminati

Answer 2

The expression in your Spanish definition, "persona sin sangre" also exists in English as "bloodless"

bloodless adj.

1. Deficient in or lacking blood.

2. Pale and anemic in color: smiled with bloodless lips.

3. Achieved without bloodshed: a bloodless coup.

4. Lacking vivacity or spirit: a long, bloodless speech.

5. Devoid of human emotion or feeling: charts of bloodless economic indicators.

I think this corresponds closely to the Spanish usage.

Another possibility would be the more clinical synonym, "anemic"

Lacking vitality; listless and weak: an anemic attempt to hit the baseball; an anemic economic recovery.

Answer 3

Maybe "apathetic" or "detached" or "half-hearted".

M-W apathetic
affected by, characterized by, or displaying apathy : having or showing little or no interest, concern, or emotion

M-W half-hearted
lacking heart, spirit, or interest

Your own suggestion, "fainthearted", suggests a persistent condition of the person it's applied to, and it could be considered insulting.

"Half-hearted" would characterize a person's present state.

Answer 4

Variants of "has no heart for/in it" would capture the sense of this better than existing answers IMO; e.g. "Messi is a great technician, but does not have his heart in the game"

This is not exactly what I'd call 'slangy', but fairly informal I think; the idiom is certainly well established:

"It is senseless to pay to educate a fool, since he has no heart for learning." -- Proverbs 17:16

Answer 5

Another option is going through the motions. Normally it is used for a particular person doing a particular thing, eg Merriam Webster gives

"to do something without making much effort to do it well", eg

He claimed that he was looking for a job, but he was really just going through the motions.

But you can also use it more broadly to refer to a person who "just goes through the motions" about life in general, for example Cambridge gives the example sentence

After his wife died, he went through the motions of living without really feeling anything

Answer 6

Such a person could be a "wet blanket":

A person who takes the fun out of a situation or activity, as by pessimism, demands, dullness, etc.

They might also be described as a "cold fish", as also noted in a comment:

A heartless individual; a person lacking empathy and emotion.

Answer 7

I might say this the other way around, as “Get your head in the game!”, which tells someone to pay attention to what they’re doing and involve themselves in it.

Answer 8

..because he is a coward or just can't engage enough.

Sounds like a wimp (informal)

a person who is not strong, brave, or confident:

I'm afraid I'm a wimp when it comes to climbing up ladders.

So, don't be a wimp!

Answer 9

Since you're asking for slang, I'd suggest casual (or even filthy/f**king casual). Similar to your expression which arose in footballing contexts, this expression arose in gaming contexts. It means someone who only casually plays something - they don't really have any skin in the game, they're just in it for light fun and don't take it seriously. It is perhaps most famous in the meme "Parry this you filthy casual".

I think this expression is only about 10-15 years old, and being such a new term, I couldn't find better links than Urban Dictionary or Know your meme to back this up.

Answer 10

The answer is simply

gutless

When you render from Spanish, especially if talking about football!, you can use a lot of brio.

Gutless bastard!

Answer 11

Such a person is said "to have ice in their veins".

With respect to "E.g.: A lot of people brand Messi as a ‘coldchest’?" , Messi is regarded as one of the all-time great players, so the expression would appear to have nothing to do with performing poorly.

Such people turn in "clinical" performances, their perfection the result of thousands of hours of practice honing their skills. More the stereotype of the fox than the stereotype of the lion. Though I should add that lions get a bum rap in that regard. As a pride, they often turn in clinical performances, bringing down large prey such as water buffalos by virtue of their teamwork.

Answer 12

I don't care what you think it means, the explicitly rare example of some people calling Messi, one of the most succesful players in the world right now, a pecho frio, simply doesn't fit the definitio. Or your translation is too literal. Get a better dictionary!

This could mean that there is a rare usage, which may be original.

It is best translated cold blooded (killer) or cold hearted:

[Example] *He appears at first as a cold-hearted and seemingly unapproachable person,

An even stronger statement beyond unapproachable would be untouchable, which is ambiguous: "If you describe someone, especially a sports player or entertainer, as untouchable, you are emphasizing that they are better than anyone else in what they do." (collinsdictionary.com)

Notice that "untouchable" can have an almost opposite meaning.

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In general, metaphors of the heart and chest are quite interesting and prominent across the world languages, frequently in a religious sense because the vital forces are a mystery (cp. psyche).

In that case one could also translate zeal and quite ambiguously zealous or zealless, because somebody who "spends a lot of time or energy in supporting something that they believe in very strongly" (Collins: zealous) pays little attention to anything else. Indeed, pecador "sinner" is from L. pecco "sin" rather than pecto "chest; figurative heart, soul".

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More over, Sp. pegador "fighter" appears to be related to pecho in Galician "bolt, peg", adj. "closed" (ie. pegged). The further etymologies appear implausible. See also pico-, Ita. piccolo.

Second, brio is probably borrowed from Celtic "strength", ultimately of uncertain origin (cp. Brittania). It is not impossible that it became vexilated with frio, L. frigus "cold".

That said, one might freely translate pecho frio as a stiff stick.

Answer 13

This reminded me of the Super Bowl ad for Snickers in 2010...

"You're playing like Betty White out there...!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5syJjBQ_k6o

About as idiomatic as you can get, and seems to convey the right sentiment in the right context that the OP is looking for.

Answer 14

What about "spoilsport"?

M-W gives:

one who spoils the sport or pleasure of others

Oh, don't be a spoilsport. Let them try it.

Dad's a spoilsport. He won't let us play football.

Be prepared to be labelled humourless, difficult, a spoilsport, and a ruiner of parties, meetings, dinners, and picnics. —Natalie Gil, refinery29.com, 11 July 2023

Answer 15

Wuss could be a rough equivalent in slang, as you've mentioned that pechofrío is a common slang word and its usage has extended to every informal setting to define someone who performs poorly. You've also mentioned that it is used in the ubiquitous expression ‘¡No seas pechofrío!' - 'Don't be a < something >!' as well.

Don't be a wuss!

Merriam-Webster definition of wuss:

informal : a weak, cowardly, or ineffectual person : WIMP
Don't be such a wuss.
acted like a total wuss

Wuss appears to be originated in campus slang and the first citation in OED is in sports context also:

1976 Come on you wuss, hit a basket..! John's a wuss.
_{Campus Slang (University North Carolina, Chapel Hill) (typescript) November 6} …

I've found a very good explanation of pecho frío (which is considered an insult) in an article by Wilson Liévano in Remezcla :

A pecho frío (a term that literally means ‘cold-chested’) is a player who doesn’t have the passion to face the challenge of a big game and underperforms when needed the most. It’s where lack of heart meets choking on the field, with a touch of cowardice. The phrase is so offensive, that when the fans started to chant it to Racing Club’s coach Eduardo “Chacho” Coudet (formerly a player) at a game in 2015, he turned around and replied, “Cuckold, maybe. But pecho frío, NO.” His response became so popular that one fan tattooed the phrase on his arm.

Thus, it is perhaps not possible to find an exact equivalent of pechofrío as it covers various senses. Choker is an option in sports context also per the explanation above, though it doesn't have all the elements of pechofrío:

In sports, choking is the failure of a person, or persons, to act or behave as anticipated or expected. This can occur in a game or tournament that they are strongly favoured to win, or in an instance where they have a large lead that they squander in the late stages of the event. It can also refer to repeated failures in the same event, or simply imply an unexpected failure when the event is more important than usual. - Wikipedia