Vilanova, Mourinho accept Classico draw

 Vilanova, Mourinho accept Classico draw

MADRID, Oct. 7 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova was pleased with the display of emergency defender¹ Adriano during the 2-2 draw against Real Madrid in the Clasico between his side and Real Madrid on Sunday.

Leo Messi and Crisitano Ronaldo took the headlines with two goals each in the game, but the big surprise of the night was the appearance of Adriano, who normally² plays on the wing or at full back, in the heart of the Barca defense³ ahead of Alex Song to cover for injured duo Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique⁴.

The Brazilian produced a serious display, although he was responsible for breaking the offside trap when Ronaldo scored Madrid's second goal of the night.

"We spoke⁵ with the technical staff and I spoke with him ( Adriano) on Friday, we trained with him there on Friday and Saturday, but I wanted him to say he was the man to play there. We know Madrid look to get round your back and I wanted him to be sure he could play there. He did well," said Vilanova, who was not unhappy with the result despite having seen a chance to go eight points clear of his team.

"I think that at the start of the season had we known we would be 8 points clear we would have accepted it. We had chances at the end, but we also had four defenders⁶ who were first choice last season who were injured," said Vilanova, who insisted he had confidence in recent signing Alex Song, who spent the game on the subs' bench.

Vilanova also praised Messi, saying there was no doubt he was the best player in the world.

Meanwhile Real Madrid coach, Jose Mourinho thought 2-2 was a fair result, saying: "The result has adapted to what we saw on the pitch. It was a great game and the public enjoyed it. That is the truth and the result was in the air until the final whistle," said the Madrid coach.

As Vilanova praised Messi, Mourinho was delighted with Ronaldo, who looked to be struggling with a shoulder injury which he suffered after a bad fall as he tried an overhead⁷ kick.

"He and Messi are players from a different world and it should be forbidden to say who is best. I would like the Balon D'or to be for my player, however," he commented.

1 defender   

n.保卫者，拥护者，辩护人

参考例句：

• He shouldered off a defender and shot at goal.他用肩膀挡开防守队员，然后射门。
• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。

2 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 pique   

v.伤害…的自尊心，使生气 n.不满，生气

参考例句：

• She went off in a fit of pique.她一赌气就走了。
• Tom finished the sentence with an air of pique.汤姆有些生气地说完这句话。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 defenders   

n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者

参考例句：

• The defenders were outnumbered and had to give in. 抵抗者寡不敌众，只能投降。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After hard fighting,the defenders were still masters of the city. 守军经过奋战仍然控制着城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 overhead   

adj.在头顶上的，悬空的；n.间接开支

参考例句：

• A number of birds are circling overhead.很多鸟在头顶上空盘旋。
• Many stars overhead are invisible to the naked eye.天上的许多星星是肉眼看不到的。