Jude Bellingham was officially unveiled as a Real Madrid player on Thursday after completing his €103m move from Borussia Dortmund.
The England midfielder had been linked with a move to the Premier League but decided instead on La Liga and the 14-time European champions on a six-year contract.
During his press conference in the Spanish capital, Bellingham described his move as “the proudest day of my life”, talked about being given the number 5 shirt worn by Real legend Zinedine Zidane and why he chose Spain ahead of England.
Aged only 19, Bellingham will join a youthful Madrid squad that includes 22-year-old Brazil forwards Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, French internationals Eduardo Camavinga (20) and Aurelien Tchouameni (23), and Uruguay midfielder Federico Valverde (24).
“Thank you everyone for joining me on the proudest day of my life,” said Bellingham at his unveiling.
“The day where I joined the greatest football club in the history of the game. There are a lot of people to thank for getting me to this point – Borussia Dortmund and Birmingham City, the people that worked there.
“Also the bosses here [at Real Madrid]; Mr President [Florentino Perez], Juni Calafat [scout], Jose Angel [chief executive].
“Of course, most importantly, my family for all of the support and making the deal as easy as possible, so thank you very much and finally, Hala Madrid.”
Bellingham will wear the shirt number made famous by fellow midfielder Zidane during the Frenchman's spell in Spain and the teenager is more than happy to take on the challenge. He takes over the shirt from Real defender Jesus Vallejo.
“I would like to thank Jesus Vallejo for letting me wear the number five,” Bellingham said. “I had some contact with him just to see if it was OK with him and he was a brilliant, brilliant guy, letting me wear it and just being so nice about it. I am very grateful to him.
“I have said in many interviews how much I admire Zinedene Zidane. The legacy within the club and this number. I am not trying to be the same as him, I am just trying to be Jude, but it is definitely a bit of a homage to how great he was.
“As far as [my previous number] 22 is concerned it is a number I have worn and is a number that has a lot of meaning to me. In my heart I am still a 22 but just wearing five on the back.
“We will see what happens in the future, but, right now, I am just happy to have been given the honour of wearing that number.”
A number of Premier League clubs – including Liverpool and treble-winning Manchester City – were linked with Bellingham, who left English side Birmingham City to join Dortmund in 2020.
But in the end, the lure of Carlo Ancelotti's Los Blancos team proved too great.
“Money is not a thing for me. I don't think about money at all when I make these kind of decisions. I never have, I never will. I play the game purely out of love,” said Bellingham, who has 24 England caps to his name.
“I spoke with the people when I was given permission by Borussia Dortmund. I loved the feeling I got from the club. I couldn't hide it, I told them more or less straight away what I felt about the club and after I made my decision I wanted it all to happen quickly.
“It wasn't a case of the other teams are bad or they weren't good, it is just that, for me, Madrid are the greatest.”
Results
Men's finals
45kg:Duc Le Hoang (VIE) beat Zolfi Amirhossein (IRI) points 29-28. 48kg: Naruephon Chittra (THA) beat Joseph Vanlalhruaia (IND) TKO round 2.
51kg: Sakchai Chamchit (THA) beat Salam Al Suwaid (IRQ) TKO round 1. 54kg: Veerasak Senanue (THA) beat Huynh Hoang Phi (VIE) 30-25.
57kg: Almaz Sarsembekov (KAZ) beat Tak Chuen Suen (MAC) RSC round 3. 60kg: Yerkanat Ospan (KAZ) beat Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) 30-27.
63.5kg: Abil Galiyev (KAZ) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE) 29-28. 67kg: Narin Wonglakhon (THA) beat Mohammed Mardi (UAE) 29-28.
71kg: Amine El Moatassime (UAE) w/o Shaker Al Tekreeti (IRQ). 75kg: Youssef Abboud (LBN) w/o Ayoob Saki (IRI).
81kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Khaled Tarraf (LBN) 29-28. 86kg: Ali Takaloo (IRI) beat Emil Umayev (KAZ) 30-27.
91kg: Hamid Reza Kordabadi (IRI) beat Mohamad Osaily (LBN) RSC round 1. 91-plus kg: Mohammadrezapoor Shirmohammad (IRI) beat Abdulla Hasan (IRQ) 30-27.
Women's finals
45kg: Somruethai Siripathum (THA) beat Ha Huu Huynh (VIE) 30-27. 48kg: Thanawan Thongduang (THA) beat Colleen Saddi (PHI) 30-27.
51kg: Wansawang Srila Or (THA) beat Thuy Phuong Trieu (VIE) 29-28. 54kg: Ruchira Wongsriwo (THA) beat Zeinab Khatoun (LBN) 30-26.
57kg: Sara Idriss (LBN) beat Zahra Nasiri Bargh (IRI) 30-27. 60kg: Kaewrudee Kamtakrapoom (THA) beat Sedigheh Hajivand (IRI) TKO round 2.
63.5kg: Nadiya Moghaddam (IRI) w/o Reem Al Issa (JOR).
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
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%3Cp%3EThe%20influx%20of%20talented%20young%20Afghan%20players%20to%20UAE%20cricket%20could%20have%20a%20big%20impact%20on%20the%20fortunes%20of%20both%20countries.%20Here%20are%20three%20Emirates-based%20players%20to%20watch%20out%20for.%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EHassan%20Khan%20Eisakhil%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMohammed%20Nabi%20is%20still%20proving%20his%20worth%20at%20the%20top%20level%20but%20there%20is%20another%20reason%20he%20is%20raging%20against%20the%20idea%20of%20retirement.%20If%20the%20allrounder%20hangs%20on%20a%20little%20bit%20longer%2C%20he%20might%20be%20able%20to%20play%20in%20the%20same%20team%20as%20his%20son%2C%20Hassan%20Khan.%20The%20family%20live%20in%20Ajman%20and%20train%20in%20Sharjah.%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMasood%20Gurbaz%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EThe%20opening%20batter%2C%20who%20trains%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Academy%2C%20is%20another%20player%20who%20is%20a%20part%20of%20a%20famous%20family.%20His%20brother%2C%20Rahmanullah%2C%20was%20an%20IPL%20winner%20with%20Kolkata%20Knight%20Riders%2C%20and%20opens%20the%20batting%20with%20distinction%20for%20Afghanistan.%0D%3Cbr%3E%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOmid%20Rahman%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EThe%20fast%20bowler%20became%20a%20pioneer%20earlier%20this%20year%20when%20he%20became%20the%20first%20Afghan%20to%20represent%20the%20UAE.%20He%20showed%20great%20promise%20in%20doing%20so%2C%20too%2C%20playing%20a%20key%20role%20in%20the%20senior%20team%E2%80%99s%20qualification%20for%20the%20Asia%20Cup%20in%20Muscat%20recently.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Other simple ideas for sushi rice dishes
Cheat’s nigiri
This is easier to make than sushi rolls. With damp hands, form the cooled rice into small tablet shapes. Place slices of fresh, raw salmon, mackerel or trout (or smoked salmon) lightly touched with wasabi, then press, wasabi side-down, onto the rice. Serve with soy sauce and pickled ginger.
Easy omurice
This fusion dish combines Asian fried rice with a western omelette. To make, fry cooked and cooled sushi rice with chopped vegetables such as carrot and onion and lashings of sweet-tangy ketchup, then wrap in a soft egg omelette.
Deconstructed sushi salad platter
This makes a great, fuss-free sharing meal. Arrange sushi rice on a platter or board, then fill the space with all your favourite sushi ingredients (edamame beans, cooked prawns or tuna, tempura veggies, pickled ginger and chilli tofu), with a dressing or dipping sauce on the side.
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
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.
