Abel Braga has his eyes firmly set on winning the Pro league.
Abel Braga has his eyes firmly set on winning the Pro league.
Abel Braga has his eyes firmly set on winning the Pro league.
Abel Braga has his eyes firmly set on winning the Pro league.

Sport

Braga has eyes on the title

Abel Braga and his table-topping Al Jazira side have their sights firmly fixed on the title after their 4-0 rout of city rivals Al Wahda.

Amith Passela
Amith Passela

February 17, 2009

  • English
  • Arabic

ABU DHABI // Abel Braga and his table-topping Al Jazira side have their sights firmly fixed on the title after their 4-0 rout of city rivals Al Wahda at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium. "For us, this is the best possible result we could have hoped for at the start of the second half of the league," he said. "The league is our main hope now after we were beaten in the President's Cup [by Wahda]. This wasn't a revenge game but the result was important to keep our title hopes on track."

Jazira scored two goals in each half, but Braga believes the final score flattered his side. "We were lucky," he said. "The game changed in a dramatic two minutes. This is football. The coach at the other end took a risk to open out, and we took advantage and scored two more from the chances that came our way. I think the 4-0 score didn't do justice to the game because it was a well contested match."

Fernando Baiano, the leading scorer in the Pro League with 12, broke the deadlock, with his fellow Brazilian Rafael Sobis scoring the next two. The skipper Ibrahim Dially completed the rout. The Wahda coach Josef Hickersberger said: "I couldn't believe we were suddenly two goals down. We were the better team until then. We still had a chance to get back. We took a risk and we got punished more. "If you give space to players of the calibre of Sobis and Baiano, it is a risk.

"But I had to take that chance because for me losing 2-0 and 4-0 didn't matter. I wanted my team to come back, and we had a couple of good shots that were well saved by the goalkeeper, Ali Kashief. And we also missed a few chances earlier in the game. It may sound ridiculous, but we played better than we did when we beat Jazira in the President's Cup." The win puts Jazira two points clear of Al Ahli and Al Ain.

apassela@thenational.ae

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While you're here
THE LOWDOWN

Romeo Akbar Walter

Rating: 2/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Robby Grewal
Cast: John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher 

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KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees

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Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets

More from Sholto Byrnes
Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction

Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.

Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.

Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.

Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.

Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.

What are the guidelines?

Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.

Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.

Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.

Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.

Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.

Source: American Paediatric Association
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Coffee: black death or elixir of life?

It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?

Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.

The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.

Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver. 

The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.

But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.

Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.

It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.

So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.

Rory Reynolds

Al Jazira Football ClubAl Wahda Football Club