There are times to ignore the footballing cliché to take each game as it comes. When the next match is against Andorra, England have reasons to cast their gaze a little further ahead, as far as Tuesday, certainly, when if they beat Hungary, they could all but seal their place in the 2022 World Cup. And to Qatar, where they will very probably be playing next year.
Since Steve McClaren inherited a hugely gifted group and contrived to fail to reach Euro 2008, England have excelled at qualifying, if not necessarily during the subsequent tournaments. Gareth Southgate has altered that: his World Cup and European Championships have felt triumphs of preparation, even if a pertinent criticism concerns his ability to think on his feet and change a defining game mid-match.
And so England’s remaining fixtures can feel further preparation for a World Cup with a difference, and not merely because it will be held in winter, partway through the domestic season. For European countries, this is a one-off: the first time major tournaments have been staged in successive years. The usual cycle has changed, with less time for revolution or rejuvenation.
Which should suit sides who flourished at Euro 2020, like England. There is still more case for continuity. Consider England’s age profile, and their oldest player is Kyle Walker, who remains absurdly quick, and all should be plausible choices in 2022. Then factor in the reality that squads were expanded to 26 in the summer for Covid times and only 23 will go to Qatar next year and it feels still harder for others to break in.
So while England are benefiting from the emergence of many a talent, it presents problems for those on the outside looking in. The demoted Nick Pope and Ben White, leapfrogged by Aaron Ramsdale and Fikayo Tomori respectively, are cases in point.
The precocious, uncapped Emile Smith Rowe plays in positions that Phil Foden, Mason Mount, Bukayo Saka, Jack Grealish, Jesse Lingard, Jadon Sancho and Raheem Sterling can occupy. As, indeed, can the overlooked Mason Greenwood, with Southgate citing his heavy workload with Manchester United as a reason for again omitting a wonderful natural finisher.
If Harry Kane may see a meeting with minnows Andorra on Saturday as a way to get closer to Wayne Rooney’s England record of 53 goals, for Tammy Abraham, renascent at Roma, and Ollie Watkins, who scored against San Marino in March but was cut from the Euros squad, the opponents may offer an opportunity to stake a case to understudy the captain, especially in the absence of the injured Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Patrick Bamford, now also sidelined, failed to take his opportunity against San Marino and those on the margins may not get too many more openings.
Two late additions to the squad could be candidates for future cuts. There was a time when James Ward-Prowse and Kalvin Phillips seemed to be jostling for position in the pecking order. The Southampton captain was a surprise omission from the Euro 2020 squad, while the Leeds man flourished. Ward-Prowse owes his inclusion now to Phillips’ absence but feels a back-up.
Ben Chilwell, meanwhile, had a frustrating summer, including 10 days in self-isolation after an ill-timed chat with Billy Gilmour, no minutes on the pitch and the discovery that he ranked as the third-choice left-back in a squad with only two specialists, courtesy of Kieran Trippier’s versatility. Factor in a bit-part role with Chelsea and Chilwell has a point to prove.
His recall now comes as Southgate is down to his last two right-backs, with four chosen last month and three starting the last time they faced Andorra. It feels safe to assume they cannot all go to Qatar.
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
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
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
Four tips to secure IoT networks
Mohammed Abukhater, vice president at FireEye in the Middle East, said:
- Keep device software up-to-date. Most come with basic operating system, so users should ensure that they always have the latest version
- Besides a strong password, use two-step authentication. There should be a second log-in step like adding a code sent to your mobile number
- Usually smart devices come with many unnecessary features. Users should lock those features that are not required or used frequently
- Always create a different guest network for visitors
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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 biog
Simon Nadim has completed 7,000 dives.
The hardest dive in the UAE is the German U-boat 110m down off the Fujairah coast.
As a child, he loved the documentaries of Jacques Cousteau
He also led a team that discovered the long-lost portion of the Ines oil tanker.
If you are interested in diving, he runs the XR Hub Dive Centre in Fujairah
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
more from Janine di Giovanni
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
More from our neighbourhood series:
'Skin'
Dir: Guy Nattiv
Starring: Jamie Bell, Danielle McDonald, Bill Camp, Vera Farmiga
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Five films to watch
Castle in the Sky (1986)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Only Yesterday (1991)
Pom Poki (1994)
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013)
