All set for Barcelona city derby

 　　MADRID, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona face one of the most difficult games of the season when they face city rivals Espanyol on Sunday night.

　　Newly crowned World Club Champions, Barca travel to the Cornella-El Prat Stadium after starting the weekend three points behind title rivals Real Madrid and that gap could have grown to six points by the time the match kicks off if Real Madrid beat Granada on Saturday.

　　The Barcelona coach, Pep Guardiola, was named as the best coach in the World by the International Federation¹ of Football History and Statistics on Friday and he has virtually a full squad² to choose from.

　　Striker David Villa³ is out with a broken leg, while Ibrahima Affelay is still recovering from his knee operation, but Andres Iniesta has shaken off a muscle problem that he suffered before Christmas and will be able to play, as will Alexis Sanchez, who played for 20 minutes in Wednesday's Copa del Rey win at home to Osasuna.

　　Guardiola is likely to resort to his three-man defense⁴ away to Espanyol with Dani Alves playing as a false winger, while Eric Abidal, Gerard Pique⁵ and Carles Puyol provide the defensive⁶ cover.

　　Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez and Cesc Fabrigas will play in midfield, while Leo Messi, Iniesta and Alexis are likely to provide pace and mobility⁷ in attack.

　　Guardiola has already warned his players that facing their neighbors will be as tough as playing away to sides such as Valencia or Real Madrid and Espanyol always look to perform against Barcelona.

　　Espanyol are enjoying a solid season and are in eighth place in the BBVA Primera Liga with 23 points. Mauricio Pochettino's side suffered a surprise 2-1 defeat away to Cordoba in the Copa del Rey on Thursday, but have built their season primarily on solid home form.

　　Striker Sergio Garcia is a constant threat for rival defenses with his mobility, while Cristian Alvarez is enjoying a good season in goal, although this will be his first derby against Barca.

　　Espanyol will count on 40,000 fans in their ground in the hope that the atmosphere will intimidate⁸ their Barca, but as Real Madrid have already discovered this season, it needs more than a hostile atmosphere to disturb Guardiola's men.

1 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

2 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。

3 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

4 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。

5 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。

6 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

7 mobility   

n.可动性，变动性，情感不定

参考例句：

• The difference in regional house prices acts as an obstacle to mobility of labour.不同地区房价的差异阻碍了劳动力的流动。
• Mobility is very important in guerrilla warfare.机动性在游击战中至关重要。

8 intimidate   

vt.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• You think you can intimidate people into doing what you want?你以为你可以威胁别人做任何事？
• The first strike capacity is intended mainly to intimidate adversary.第一次攻击的武力主要是用来吓阻敌方的。