Thomas Tuchel has hailed Kai Havertz for playing through the pain of a “horrible” broken finger in Chelsea’s 2-0 Carabao Cup semi-final first-leg win over Tottenham.
Havertz’s fifth goal of the season put Chelsea in charge against a miserable Spurs, but the Germany forward suffered the nasty broken finger in the tumble that followed his early finish.
The 22-year-old battled on until half-time when he was forced to give up amid mounting pain, but Chelsea still produced a fine result amid a makeshift set-up and against a strong Spurs side.
Chelsea made a last-minute switch to a back four after Kai Havertz and N’Golo Kante tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday morning.
And Tuchel paid tribute to Chelsea’s players for shaking off the mounting injury and coronavirus-enforced absentees to put one foot in the League Cup final.
“Kai has the issue with his finger. He broke his finger and it looked horrible,” the coach said.
“And he played through the pain that was getting bigger and bigger. He survived until half-time and then we had to make the change.
“I liked our performance a lot. We looked full of confidence and had two late last-minute pieces of bad news with Thiago Silva and N’Golo Kante, who were both supposed to start.
“So we decided at the last minute to maybe switch to a back four. The guys were very committed and very open to that, to making such a late change.
“And it was a very strong performance, so it was a well-deserved win in a big match against a very strong opponent.”
Centre-back Silva’s positive test further depletes Chelsea’s defence, with Andreas Christensen out with a back problem and Ben Chilwell and Reece James long-term absentees.
Captain Cesar Azpilicueta went down late and hobbled out of the clash in the closing stages, but appears to have avoided a serious issue.
“We were very worried but Azpi says it’s only a cramp and not an injury. So that would be good news and we trust him,” Tuchel said.
Ben Davies put the ball into his net for a bungling own goal as Spurs struggled in boss Antonio Conte’s first return to former club Chelsea.
Chelsea squandered a hatful of chances to settle the affair midway through the tie, leaving the Blues’ German boss urging caution ahead of next Wednesday’s return encounter.
“We could have created a bigger cushion, yes, it was possible. We created a lot,” Tuchel said.
“But we were very, very strong, and it’s so hard to create chances against Tottenham. But especially in the second half we created a lot of big chances for a third or fourth goal.
“So everybody knows it’s not fully decided and we need another 90 minutes of top-quality football if we want to go through.”
Romelu Lukaku was back up front for Chelsea after his weekend omission owing to internal disciplinary wrangles.
I’m happy with his performance. I like how he played, strong, huge commitment in defensive work," Tuchel said.
The club-record £98 million ($132.83 billion) recruit had fallen into hot water with the Blues after revealing unhappiness at Stamford Bridge in a recent interview.
Lukaku, 28, missed Sunday’s 2-2 Premier League draw with Liverpool, but has since apologised to all at Chelsea and the club’s supporters, and accepted a fine.
The former Inter Milan star nodded wide from a glorious Hakim Ziyech cross, but Tuchel was still impressed by his night.
“He was always dangerous, always used his body, and was always involved in dangerous situations," he said.\
"I expected it honestly, because Romelu can handle pressure, he can handle adversity, and he seemed to be relaxed after the decision was made and we finished our talks.
"I felt him relaxed enough to have a performance like this.”
A deflated Spurs boss Conte insisted Tottenham can only be rated as a mid-table Premier League team, urging patience and time on a major rebuilding job to catch up with England’s top teams.
“We need to have patience because there is a lot, a lot of a job to do, in many aspects,” he said.
“Because in the last few years the level of Tottenham has dropped and dropped a lot. And now we have to rebuild, and we need to have patience and more time.
“We are working a lot, to try to fight in this league, but in this moment we are in the middle. That’s our situation, we are in the middle. Not up, not down, we are in the middle.”
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
if you go
The flights Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, Emirates, Etihad, and Royal Jordanian all offer direct, three-and-a-half-hour flights from the UAE to the Jordanian capital Amman. Alternatively, from June Fly Dubai will offer a new direct service from Dubai to Aqaba in the south of the country. See the airlines’ respective sites for varying prices or search on reliable price-comparison site Skyscanner.
The trip
Jamie Lafferty was a guest of the Jordan Tourist Board. For more information on adventure tourism in Jordan see Visit Jordan. A number of new and established tour companies offer the chance to go caving, rock-climbing, canyoning, and mountaineering in Jordan. Prices vary depending on how many activities you want to do and how many days you plan to stay in the country. Among the leaders are Terhaal, who offer a two-day canyoning trip from Dh845 per person. If you really want to push your limits, contact the Stronger Team. For a more trek-focused trip, KE Adventure offers an eight-day trip from Dh5,300 per person.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%20Twin-turbocharged%204-litre%20V8%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20625%20bhp%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20630Nm%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh974%2C011%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
More on Quran memorisation:
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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Canada
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Keep it fun and engaging
Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
RESULTS
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 1,600m
Winner Thabet Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Abdallah Al Hammadi (trainer)
5.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner Blue Diamond, Pat Cosgrave, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm Arabian Triple Crown Round-1 Listed (PA) Dh230,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner Hameem, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6.30pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Shoja’A Muscat, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7pm Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
Winner Heros De Lagarde, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (T) 2,400m
Winner Good Tidings, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
Tenet
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh
Rating: 5/5
