It had been a while. Some 721 days, to be precise. Or, to be even more precise, 721 days and eight minutes of action, between Gareth Bale’s 80th league goal for Real Madrid and his 81st. In between, there have been many ups and downs and attempts at an exit.
But in some ways, Bale would be forgiven for thinking very little has changed in the period through his dispiriting fall in the hierarchy at Madrid through the 2019-20 season, then his patchy loan year at Tottenham Hotspur, and the sweet moment on Sunday where he received a pass from Karim Benzema and calmly put Madrid ahead at Levante.
His previous La Liga goal for Madrid had been scored just up the Mediterranean coast, at Villarreal, on a see-saw night when Bale scored twice, his second goal in the 86th minute, and contrived to collect two yellow cards and be sent off in injury time.
That match, on the first day of September 2019, finished 2-2, and having served his suspension, Bale then spent most of the rest of that season estranged from the starting XI, his relationship with the then Madrid coach, Zinedine Zidane becoming ever more glacial, Bale’s enthusiasm for the club waning.
Fast forward to the City of Valencia stadium at the weekend, and he has a happier outlook. It was Bale’s second successive start, in the second Liga match of Carlo Ancelotti’s second spell as Madrid manager.
Bale gave Madrid the lead after four minutes. He soon gathered he was still part of a Madrid as unpredictable as they were two years earlier, part of a league where hierarchy counts for only so much.
A goal ahead at half-time, Madrid were trailing Levante by the 57th minute. Only after Bale, 32, Eden Hazard, 30, and Isco, 29, had been substituted, in favour of Marco Asensio, Vinicius and Rodrygo — all of them under 25 — did Madrid remount the rollercoaster. Vinicius scored two excellent equalisers on the way to a 3-3 draw, reminding Bale and Hazard that competition for places in the wide areas of Madrid’s attack is strong.
An hour or so earlier, in north-east Italy, Bale’s former accomplice Cristiano Ronaldo was aboard a rollercoaster of his own. And for a brief minute or so, Ronaldo believed he had, once again, steered the ride better than anybody.
Ronaldo’s Juventus drew their opening fixture of the Serie A season 2-2 at Udinese. They had led 2-0 after 23 minutes. Ronaldo started on the bench, a choice bound to sustain the summer-long speculation over whether or not he will be fulfilling the last year of his current Juventus contract or moving elsewhere. “It was a mutual decision,” said the club’s senior director, Pavel Nedved, of Ronaldo being left out of manager Max Allegri’s starting XI, “based on fitness.”
Nedved knew that would not smother the speculation. Ronaldo’s restlessness, his curiosity about whether there may be one more big move available to him in club football as he approaches the age of 37, has been barely disguised over the last 12 months. When Juventus, who signed him from Madrid in 2018, failed to win the Serie A title last May his frustration was plain.
But for Ronaldo to move, vast hurdles would need to be overcome. He, like Bale, has a year left on his contract. Like Bale, he earns a salary very few other clubs have the resources to match. Juventus have as yet received no viable offers for CR7 with a week left of the transfer window.
He is also their most reliable match-winner. Ronaldo scored more Serie A goals than anybody last season.
In injury time against Udinese, he and Juve believed that the Portuguese’s knack of stealing a show had been demonstrated once again.
Allegri summoned Ronaldo on the hour, in between the pair of goalkeeping errors from Wojciech Szczesny that invited Udinese back into the game. Like Ancelotti at Levante, Allegri also added a dash of youth to a late salvage operation, bringing Dejan Kulusevski, 21, and Federico Chiesa, 23, off the bench.
In injury time, Chiesa crossed, Ronaldo headed home in and in between his believing he had won the game for Juve and the ‘goal’ being ruled out for offside by VAR, CR7 picked up a booking for stripping off his shirt in celebration.
Hopes raised and dashed, Juventus jersey prematurely discarded: That might have been a symbol of Ronaldo’s summer, a tale of a player hinting he’d like to try on another club’s colours, but finding no prestigious new shirt quite fits.
Like Bale, Ronaldo may not be exactly where he wants to be. But neither are ready to fade into the background as they prepare their farewells to Spain and Italy.
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
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
The five pillars of Islam
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Where can I submit a sample?
Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.
Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:
- Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
- Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
- Al Towayya in Al Ain
- NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
- Bareen International Hospital
- NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
- NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
- NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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
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BMW%20M4%20Competition
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Old Slave and the Mastiff
Patrick Chamoiseau
Translated from the French and Creole by Linda Coverdale
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Cases of coronavirus in the GCC as of March 15
Saudi Arabia – 103 infected, 0 dead, 1 recovered
UAE – 86 infected, 0 dead, 23 recovered
Bahrain – 210 infected, 0 dead, 44 recovered
Kuwait – 104 infected, 0 dead, 5 recovered
Qatar – 337 infected, 0 dead, 4 recovered
Oman – 19 infected, 0 dead, 9 recovered
The%20specs
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Champions parade (UAE timings)
7pm Gates open
8pm Deansgate stage showing starts
9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral
9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street
10pm City players on stage
11pm event ends
The biog
Hobbies: Writing and running
Favourite sport: beach volleyball
Favourite holiday destinations: Turkey and Puerto Rico
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
match info
Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs
MATCH INFO
Asian Champions League, last 16, first leg:
Al Ain 2 Al Duhail 4
Second leg:
Tuesday, Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha. Kick off 7.30pm
England squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Ben White
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Mason Mount, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, James Ward-Prowse
Forwards: Tammy Abraham, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, Raheem Sterling
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Two-step truce
The UN-brokered ceasefire deal for Hodeidah will be implemented in two stages, with the first to be completed before the New Year begins, according to the Arab Coalition supporting the Yemeni government.
By midnight on December 31, the Houthi rebels will have to withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Al Saqef, coalition officials told The National.
The second stage will be the complete withdrawal of all pro-government forces and rebels from Hodeidah city, to be completed by midnight on January 7.
The process is to be overseen by a Redeployment Co-ordination Committee (RCC) comprising UN monitors and representatives of the government and the rebels.
The agreement also calls the deployment of UN-supervised neutral forces in the city and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to ensure distribution of aid across the country.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
