Roberto Mancini is not the only Italian manager putting his faith in Manchester City.
The Eastlands coach will surely have raised a smile last night when his countryman Fabio Capello selected six City players in his squad to play Switzerland.
The surprise pick was Joleon Lescott who started at centre-back ahead of Bolton's Gary Cayhill, who came on as a substitute against Bulgaria on Friday and had been expected to retain his place.
Joe Hart, of course, was in goal and he was joined in the starting line-up by Gareth Barry and James Milner, the midfielders.
Adam Johnson and Shaun Wright-Phillips, the two City widemen, were on the bench but Johnson made it five City players on the field when he replaced the injured Theo Walcott after just 13 minutes last night which England won 3-1.
However, last night was a disappointing one for City's Vincent Kompany who was sent off in Belgium's match with Turkey. But six players from one club in an England international squad is a rare achievement and will no doubt have had City fans looking back to their last "golden generation" when the likes of Colin Bell, Francis Lee, Mike Summerbee and Rodney Marsh were England regulars in the late 70s and early 80s.
In addition to their success with England and an assault on the Premier League, City are now flexing their muscle on the cinema screen as well.
Today marks the opening night of Blue Moon Rising a film that depicts life at City during the first full season of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed's ownership.
Created by Big Brother producers Endemol and directed by BAFTA winner Stewart Sugg, the film lives last season through the eyes of seven fans. Following them around the country, it also includes exclusive interviews with Mancini and Khaldoon al Mubarak, the club chairman. The "access all areas" view of City life covers the dismissal of Mark Hughes and the appointment of Mancini, plus the highs and lows of a season that were encapsulated in a two-leg Carling Cup semi-final defeat to Manchester United.
"Blue Moon Rising reinforces Manchester City's standing as the most fascinating story in the world of football," David Pullan, the commercial director, said.
"It will be a lasting testimony to one of the most exciting years in Manchester City's history."
Meanwhile, Gerrard Houllier is poised to become the 25th manager in Aston Villa's 126-year history with his appointment as Martin O'Neill's successor expected to be announced in the next 24 hours.
Houllier will be only the second foreign coach to take charge of the English Midlands club after Jozef Venglos' ill-fated spell two decades ago. He is set to be named as Villa's fifth manager of the new millennium after John Gregory, Graham Taylor, David O'Leary and O'Neill.
It will represent the end of a six-year exile from the Premier League for the Frenchman since his reign at Liverpool came to an end in May 2004.
Houllier, who has been working as France's technical director, is expected to face the media for the first time in his new role tomorrow. His first match in charge would be the away clash with Stoke City on Monday.
Houllier's former Liverpool number two, Phil Thompson, is expected to follow him to Villa Park. When Villa started recruiting in earnest to replace O'Neill, they admitted that Premier League experience was high on their list of priorities - and Houllier has that in abundance.
The former schoolteacher has been in management for 37 years and his clubs included Lens, Paris St Germain and, after leaving Anfield, Lyon.
He joined Liverpool in July 1998 and won the UEFA Cup, two League Cups, an FA Cup and a European Super Cup during almost six years at the helm.
* Agencies
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
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
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Is it worth it? We put cheesecake frap to the test.
The verdict from the nutritionists is damning. But does a cheesecake frappuccino taste good enough to merit the indulgence?
My advice is to only go there if you have unusually sweet tooth. I like my puddings, but this was a bit much even for me. The first hit is a winner, but it's downhill, slowly, from there. Each sip is a little less satisfying than the last, and maybe it was just all that sugar, but it isn't long before the rush is replaced by a creeping remorse. And half of the thing is still left.
The caramel version is far superior to the blueberry, too. If someone put a full caramel cheesecake through a liquidiser and scooped out the contents, it would probably taste something like this. Blueberry, on the other hand, has more of an artificial taste. It's like someone has tried to invent this drink in a lab, and while early results were promising, they're still in the testing phase. It isn't terrible, but something isn't quite right either.
So if you want an experience, go for a small, and opt for the caramel. But if you want a cheesecake, it's probably more satisfying, and not quite as unhealthy, to just order the real thing.
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Engine: 80 kWh four-wheel-drive
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 402bhp
Torque: 760Nm
Price: From Dh280,000
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh289,000
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Torbal Rayeh Wa Jayeh
Starring: Ali El Ghoureir, Khalil El Roumeithy, Mostafa Abo Seria
Stars: 3
THE DETAILS
Solo: A Star Wars Story
Director: Ron Howard
2/5