Declan Rice and Jack Grealish returned to haunt the Republic of Ireland as Lee Carsley’s first match as interim England manager ended in a comfortable Nations League victory in Dublin.
Saturday’s sold-out Aviva Stadium clash marked the start of new eras for both teams as Heimir Hallgrimsson led the hosts against a nation beginning life after Gareth Southgate.
England impressed in their first match since losing July’s Euro 2024 final, with Rice and Grealish setting Carsley on course for an impressive 2-0 win over the nation he played for 40 times as a player.
The interim boss stayed silent during “God Save the King”, just as he had indicated he would before the match against the country his goalscorers previously represented.
Rice won three senior caps for the Republic and fired England into an early lead, which former Ireland Under-21 international Grealish added to during a one-sided first half.
“Two nil to the Irish boys” sung visiting fans on an afternoon when Hallgrimsson’s hosts never looked like getting back into it as Carsley enjoyed a winning start to life in the Nations League second tier.
There was a crackling atmosphere before kick-off at the Aviva Stadium, where England’s caretaker boss accidentally took a seat in the wrong dugout before kick-off.
Irish fans ferociously booed a rendition of “God Save the King”, punctuated by cries of “no surrender” from some travelling supporters, before they bellowed out their own anthem.
Rice and Grealish felt the heat from the outset on their return to the Emerald Isle, where Jayson Molumby had a great chance to score a third-minute opener.
Robbie Brady swung in a corner that took a slight touch before the midfielder headed over at the far post, with England captain Harry Kane responding by heading over a chance of his own.
Sammie Szmodics was denied during a lively encounter, but England went ahead after 11 minutes as Trent Alexander-Arnold sensationally played Anthony Gordon in behind.
The forward struck straight at Caoimhin Kelleher but kept the move alive, eventually playing the ball across for Kane to get away a shot that was blocked, the ball falling for Rice to rifle into the top right-hand corner.
The Arsenal midfielder held his hands up after a goal that led to some England chants of “he’s one of our own”.
Kelleher prevented Kane from making things worse, with rival fans trading some unsavoury chants as dominant England patiently probed, leading to a second goal in the 26th minute.
Rice was heavily involved in a brilliant passing move that ended with him cutting the ball back for Grealish to sweep home past the statuesque Kelleher in front of the England support.
The Manchester City playmaker jumped and punched the air – quite the contrast to Rice’s celebration.
That gut punch took the edge off the hostile atmosphere, although the way Hallgrimsson’s side struggled to get a grip on proceedings also had an impact on the mood.
Kane repeatedly threatened to add to Ireland’s misery before the break, from which England returned continuing to dominate possession without having to deal with much in return.
There was a blow for the hosts as captain Seamus Coleman limped off, but the Republic responded well as Szmodics went close before Molumby lifted over.
Those opportunities increased the volume, as did the sight of Rice on the deck in pain as Gordon was stopped.
Grealish trotted off to a cacophony of boos as Carsley turned to his bench, with Morgan Gibbs-White and Angel Gomes coming on for their England debuts.
Kasey McAteer had come on for his Republic bow shortly before as Hallgrimsson continued to make alterations of his own.
Jarrod Bowen and Eberechi Eze had efforts to add gloss to the scoreline, but Carsley will no doubt be pleased with a winning start to life as England boss.
Afterwards, Carsley said: “I think you've got to give Ireland credit as well, they are very resilient, they closed the gaps and our space maybe became a bit wider [in the second half].
“We found it a little bit more difficult to get through them but at 2-0 we were quite comfortable.”
Goalscorer Rice told ITV: “Really good. It was the manager's first game and we got a win.
“We’re in the league below where we want to be so we know how important it is to win this group.
“It has been really refreshing this week - Lee has been amazing to work with, his meetings have been top and training has been really good.”
Grealish said on his England return after missing Euro 2024: “I need to start playing regularly, scoring goals, and that’s what I did today.
“Over the summer, it was one of the worst summers of my life because you can’t not see everything that is happening in front of you. It was difficult but it's given me something to bounce back.”
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
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
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
ADCC AFC Women’s Champions League Group A fixtures
October 3: v Wuhan Jiangda Women’s FC
October 6: v Hyundai Steel Red Angels Women’s FC
October 9: v Sabah FA
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
|
1.
|
United States
|
|
2.
|
China
|
|
3.
|
UAE
|
|
4.
|
Japan
|
|
5
|
Norway
|
|
6.
|
Canada
|
|
7.
|
Singapore
|
|
8.
|
Australia
|
|
9.
|
Saudi Arabia
|
|
10.
|
South Korea
|
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
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
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
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.
if you go
The flights
Flydubai flies to Podgorica or nearby Tivat via Sarajevo from Dh2,155 return including taxes. Turkish Airlines flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Podgorica via Istanbul; alternatively, fly with Flydubai from Dubai to Belgrade and take a short flight with Montenegro Air to Podgorica. Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Podgorica via Belgrade. Flights cost from about Dh3,000 return including taxes. There are buses from Podgorica to Plav.
The tour
While you can apply for a permit for the route yourself, it’s best to travel with an agency that will arrange it for you. These include Zbulo in Albania (www.zbulo.org) or Zalaz in Montenegro (www.zalaz.me).
Results
Stage Two:
1. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 04:20:45
2. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix
3. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates
4. Olav Kooij (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
General Classification:
1. Jasper Philipsen (BEL) Alpecin-Fenix 09:03:03
2. Dmitry Strakhov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:04
3. Mark Cavendish (GBR) QuickStep-AlphaVinyl 00:00:06
4. Sam Bennett (IRL) Bora-Hansgrohe 00:00:10
5. Pascal Ackermann (GER) UAE Team Emirates 00:00:12
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Mica
Director: Ismael Ferroukhi
Stars: Zakaria Inan, Sabrina Ouazani
3 stars
DIVINE%20INTERVENTOIN
%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Elia%20Suleiman%2C%20Manal%20Khader%2C%20Amer%20Daher%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Elia%20Suleiman%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%204.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
