It sounds like the start of a particularly tenuous football trivia question. What links Eusebio, Gary Bailey, Jomo Sono and the Al Naboodah Construction Group in Dubai?
If you are racking your brain, and even the old fail-safes are not fitting the bill, then give up.
Not even Andy Karacinski's work colleagues at the Naboodah head offices in Deira know of his illustrious past in football.
"That's Mr Andy?" one work-mate asks, disbelieving, as he sifts through some of the old photographs from the company's chief commercial officer's former playing days.
The Wales-born Karacinski moved from his home in the UK and relocated to South Africa in 1976 after answering a newspaper advertisement for a construction job.
Unbeknown to him, he was about to embark on a journey which, over the next 13 years, would see him become one of the most recognisable faces in South African football.
Not that the name by which he goes about his daily business in Dubai, where he has lived since 1998, is precisely synonymous with the game there.
At the time, South African footballers were known ubiquitously by nicknames, dreamed up to reflect their personality or their looks.
For example, during his time with the Orlando Pirates, Karacinski shared a dressing-room with Meshak "Soweto Socialite" Mjanqueka, so called because he went to work in a suit, which his teammates thought must make him an executive.
Their new white colleague earned his own alias on account of his long dark hair and beard.
When the club's witch-doctor inquired who the new player was, he was informed by a fellow player: "Can't you tell by how he looks? That is Jesus, and he has come to save us."
In February 2008, when his former club marked their 70th anniversary, Karacinski was named among the top 10 players ever to wear the Pirates jersey by the Johannesburg Sunday Times.
"Jesus Karajinsky [sic] was hardworking and could play in a variety of positions in defence and midfield," was the newspaper's suitably prosaic analysis of the self-professed midfield workhorse.
Upon settling in Johannesburg, Karacinski joined Wits, a team in the all-white, semi-professional league, where Bailey was making his way as an emerging goalkeeper.
At the end of the season, Bailey was offered the chance to play for Manchester United, where he was soon to make his name in English football.
Doors opened for Karacinski, too. Rather than a move to one of Europe's top leagues, he joined a side in the newly-formed Federation League, which for the first time integrated players of all colours.
Cue a brief alliance with Eusebio, the Mozambique-born forward who had earlier seen glory with Portugal.
Then on to the Pirates, South Africa's equivalent of Manchester United, led by Sono, their brilliant playmaker.
Karacinski went on to become the first white player to captain the club, which are based in Soweto, the black township, and with it came some serious hero worship.
"There was nobody to touch the Pirates in terms of attendances," he recalls. "When we played away, there would be more people supporting us than the hometown team."
The slow take-up of tickets for the forthcoming World Cup speaks less of a lack of passion for the game in South Africa than overpricing. There was no need to have to market the game to drive sales in Karacinski's day.
To guard against overcrowding, one derby game against the Kaizer Chiefs, their main rivals, was organised for a workday, but 50,000 still attended.
"Everybody was supposed to be at work, but to them, football was everything," he remembers. "There was never any violence. For a game like the Chiefs v Pirates, there was an imaginary line at halfway.
"One set of supporters sat one side, and the other set on the other. And at the end of the game, they just walked out together.
"A lot of people tried to sit on the halfway line, so they could sit with their friends - albeit the other side of line.
"That must seem strange to people from the UK or Europe, where fights happen because you are wearing the wrong colour scarf."
Karacinski's playing days with the Pirates ended when he suffered a smashed pelvis in a road traffic accident. It took him two years to rebuild enough strength to play.
While he never returned to action for the Pirates, the injuries he suffered in the car crash have hardly held him back.
Having just turned 60, he still plays regularly, for his son Kris's five-a-side team, Real Bad, in the popular league at Al Nasr club.
Mainly because of work commitments, he has been without an 11-a-side Dubai Amateur League club since last season, but he is unlikely to ever officially retire. "The boots haven't worn out yet," he says.
pradley@thenational.ae
Andy Karacinski
■ Age 60
■ Position Midfield/defence
■ Former teams Bedworth Town (England), Bluebells, Orlando Pirates (South Africa)
■ Current team Real Bad (Dubai five-a-side league)
Finest opponent
■ John Charles (Wales/Juventus). When Karacinski was playing for Bedworth Town, the English semi-professional side, he came up against "King John" Charles, the ageing great who was player/manager of Merthyr Tydfil by then. Charles was commonly regarded as Wales's greatest ever player
Top teammate
■ Jomo Sono (Pirates). Known as "The Black Prince of Soweto", Sono was recruited from the Pirates to play alongside Pele at the New York Cosmos. He scored four goals for the Springboks as a 20-year-old against an Argentine touring XI. Sono later managed the South African national team
Biggest match
■ Karacinski captained the Pirates in a vital tie against Kaizer Chiefs, their Soweto rivals. The fixture is the biggest in South African football anyway. The fact so much was riding on it meant the game was too big for the Orlando Stadium. It was switched to Ellis Park, where an estimated 110,000 fans came to watch
Memorable moment
■ While still in the English semi-professional leagues, Karacinski was detailed to mark Geoff Astle, the former West Brom and England striker. One jibe too many about Astle's famous miss at the 1970 World Cup saw Karacinski dumped over the perimeter fence. "A lot tougher in Mexico," was all Astle said
Results:
Men's 100m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 15 sec; 2. Rheed McCracken (AUS) 15.40; 3. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 15.75. Men's 400m T34: 1. Walid Ktila (TUN) 50.56; 2. Mohammed Al Hammadi (UAE) 50.94; 3. Henry Manni (FIN) 52.24.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
Russia's Muslim Heartlands
Dominic Rubin, Oxford
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
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
23-man shortlist for next six Hall of Fame inductees
Tony Adams, David Beckham, Dennis Bergkamp, Sol Campbell, Eric Cantona, Andrew Cole, Ashley Cole, Didier Drogba, Les Ferdinand, Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Fowler, Steven Gerrard, Roy Keane, Frank Lampard, Matt Le Tissier, Michael Owen, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes, John Terry, Robin van Persie, Nemanja Vidic, Patrick Viera, Ian Wright.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company%20profile
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
