O zagueiro cometeu outra falta perto do gol.

O is the masculine singular definite article, meaning the.

So o zagueiro = the defender.

In Portuguese, articles are used more often than in English. In a sentence like this, using o sounds completely natural because it refers to a specific player in the context.

• o zagueiro = the defender
• um zagueiro = a defender

Zagueiro is a soccer term meaning defender, often especially a center-back.

In Brazilian Portuguese football vocabulary:

• zagueiro = defender / center-back
• goleiro = goalkeeper
• atacante = striker / forward

So this is a very common word in sports contexts.

Cometeu is the preterite form of cometer.

That means it describes a completed action in the past:

• cometer = to commit
• cometeu = committed

So O zagueiro cometeu... means The defender committed...

This tense is very common for narrating events in sports, stories, and past actions.

Because cometer uma falta is the normal expression for to commit a foul.

It works very similarly to English:

• cometer uma falta = to commit a foul
• cometer um erro = to make/commit a mistake
• cometer um crime = to commit a crime

So this is a standard verb-noun combination, not a strange literal translation.

Outra means another or other, and it has to agree with falta, which is a feminine noun.

• outra falta = another foul
• outro gol = another goal

Agreement matters in Portuguese:

• masculine singular: outro
• feminine singular: outra
• masculine plural: outros
• feminine plural: outras

Since falta is feminine, outra is the correct form.

No. Falta has several meanings depending on context.

Common meanings include:

• foul in sports
• absence
• lack
• something missing

Examples:

• O juiz marcou falta. = The referee called a foul.
• Senti sua falta. = I missed you.
• Há falta de água. = There is a lack of water.

In this sentence, because of the soccer context, falta clearly means foul.

Because de + o contracts to do in Portuguese.

So:

• perto de o gol → perto do gol

This kind of contraction is required in normal Portuguese.

Other common ones:

• de + a = da
• de + os = dos
• de + as = das

So perto do gol means near the goal.

In Brazilian Portuguese, the normal word is gol.

• gol = goal

In European Portuguese, you may also see golo.

Since this sentence is in Brazilian Portuguese, gol is exactly what you would expect.

Yes. Gol is a masculine noun, so it takes o:

• o gol = the goal
• do gol = of the goal / near the goal, after contraction with de

That is why the phrase is perto do gol.

Yes, very natural.

The basic order is:

O zagueiro + cometeu + outra falta + perto do gol

That is:

subject + verb + object + place

This is a very normal sentence pattern in Portuguese.

You could move perto do gol for emphasis in some contexts, but the version given is the most neutral and natural.

In soccer, cometeu outra falta is the more standard and idiomatic choice.

Fazer uma falta may sometimes be heard in informal speech, but cometer uma falta is the safer and more natural expression, especially for learners.

So if you want to sound correct and natural, use:

• cometer uma falta

Portuguese often leaves out subject pronouns when the subject is already clear.

Here, the noun O zagueiro is already the subject, so adding ele would be unnecessary.

Portuguese does this a lot:

• O zagueiro cometeu outra falta.
• Ele cometeu outra falta.

Both are possible, but once the noun is stated, you do not need the pronoun.

A rough pronunciation guide would be:

O zagueiro cometeu outra falta perto do gol
→ oo zah-GAY-roh koh-meh-TAY-oo OH-trah FAWL-tah PEHR-too doh gohl

A few useful notes:

• z in zagueiro sounds like z
• lh does not appear here, so no special issue there
• ou in outra sounds like oh
• gol in Brazilian Portuguese is usually a short, strong gohl

This is only an approximation, but it can help you get started.