Ruben Amorim hailed “perfect captain” Bruno Fernandes after his hat-trick inspired Manchester United to a 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad and a place in the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
United dominated their Spanish opponents to advance 5-2 on aggregate following last week's 1-1 draw in San Sebastian.
Mikel Oyarzabal opened the scoring from the spot for La Real, but Fernandes kept his cool to score a pair of penalties before netting a third goal after substitute Jon Aramburu was sent off for the visitors.
Diogo Dalot completed a win that provides a welcome boost and set up a quarter-final clash against Lyon, with Fernandes dreaming of lifting another trophy.
“When we need it, he’s always there,” Amorim said of the Portugal playmaker.
“In the set-pieces, he can change position, he can bring the ball forward, he can score goals, he can make transitions, like he showed today in the last 10 minutes of the game.
“He can defend so it’s a perfect captain for our team, and we need to help him to win titles, because he deserves a lot.”
It keeps alive United's hopes of winning a trophy this season and, realistically, of securing European football again next season, given their domestic struggles.
Sociedad's season also hinged on European glory amid a disappointing La Liga campaign and Imanol Alguacil was left infuriated by the performance of Benoit Bastien.
The French official awarded United three penalties, although the final spot-kick was overturned, and sent-off Aramburu early in the second half.
"There is frustration, anger! A stadium like this, a stage like this, does not deserve a refereeing performance like this," said Alguacil. "All we wanted was a fair and equal referee."
Postecoglou hails Tottenham 'leaders'
Ange Postecoglou saluted his "leaders" after Tottenham kept their season alive with a 3-2 aggregate win over AZ Alkmaar to reach the Europa League quarter-finals.
The pressure was on Spurs and Postecoglou after a 1-0 loss in the last-16 first leg in Alkmaar, but the Australian’s big call to start Wilson Odobert paid off with the 20-year-old scoring in each half to open his account for the club.
Tottenham vice-captain James Maddison, on the day before Thomas Tuchel names his first England squad, struck at the start of the second half in a fine display to lift the gloom hanging over the club despite Peer Koopmeiners’ 63rd-minute goal briefly bringing the tie back level.
Defeat would have all but ended Spurs’ campaign with nine weeks of the season still to go after a difficult winter period where they were hampered by injuries, but this 3-1 success sets up a last-eight tie with Eintracht Frankfurt next month.
Postecoglou started his leadership group of Guglielmo Vicario, Cristian Romero, Maddison and captain Son Heung-min for the first time since October 19 and they all responded with strong displays on a crucial night for the club.
“I think all those four leaders felt like it’s their time now. It’s been really tough for them, it’s been really tough for all of us, the whole club but particularly the players,” Postecoglou said.
“It’s the first time – somebody said – since October we’ve had our four leaders on the park; Vicario, Romero, Maddison and Sonny. So much this year we’ve relied on one or two of those, but to have all four of them out there makes a difference for us.
“I thought they all led the team well. We did look more like ourselves, but we’ve still got levels to go, because I still think players like Romero, Micky [van de Ven] and Wilson and Dom [Solanke] and all these guys are still building their way up to match fitness and match sharpness.
“With the quarter-final being three-and-a-half weeks away, there’s an opportunity for us to get these guys up to speed for that game.”
Rangers hold nerve in shoot-out
Barry Ferguson praised his Rangers players for showing the character that has been questioned this season after they edged past Fenerbahce following an epic Europa League clash.
Rangers suffered a fourth consecutive defeat at Ibrox but set up a quarter-final against Athletic Bilbao after Jack Butland saved two penalties in a 3-2 shoot-out triumph.
Goals in each half of the 90 minutes from Sebastian Szymanski had wiped out Rangers’ 3-1 first-leg lead after Ferguson’s men missed chances to put the tie beyond the Turkish side.
There were near further misses at either end before and during extra-time and Rangers kept their season alive in the shoot-out.
Interim head coach Ferguson said: “I actually thought we played well. The two goals we could have done better but the one thing I have to say, and it’s been levelled against the players, they showed character.
“It’s easy to feel sorry for yourself but they kept going. And obviously you get into the penalty situation and I thought we handled that very well.
“The main objective was to make sure I got this club into the last eight and that’s something we have done.”
Fenerbahce boss Jose Mourinho said: "We deserved to win over 90 minutes, we deserved to win after 120 minutes, we were the best team by far.
"We did everything to win. The ref and the VAR decided that we should go to penalties.
"Congratulations to Rangers but I think my team deserves everything from me, from our supporters and even from Turkey as a country."
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: BorrowMe (BorrowMe.com)
Date started: August 2021
Founder: Nour Sabri
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce / Marketplace
Size: Two employees
Funding stage: Seed investment
Initial investment: $200,000
Investors: Amr Manaa (director, PwC Middle East)
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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
The biog
Name: Marie Byrne
Nationality: Irish
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption
Book: Seagull by Jonathan Livingston
Life lesson: A person is not old until regret takes the place of their dreams
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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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
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- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
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Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
Hunger and Fury: The Crisis of Democracy in the Balkans
Jasmin Mujanović, Hurst Publishers
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
MATCH INFO
England 19 (Try: Tuilagi; Cons: Farrell; Pens: Ford (4)
New Zealand 7 (Try: Savea; Con: Mo'unga)
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
The biog
Favourite car: Ferrari
Likes the colour: Black
Best movie: Avatar
Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in media production from the Higher Colleges of Technology and diploma in production from the New York Film Academy
MATCH INFO
Kolkata Knight Riders 245/6 (20 ovs)
Kings XI Punjab 214/8 (20 ovs)
Kolkata won by 31 runs
Mobile phone packages comparison
Results
2.30pm: Park Avenue – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 2,000m; Winner: Rb Seqondtonone, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Helal Al Alawi (trainer)
3.05pm: Al Furjan – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,200m; Winner: Bosphorus, Dane O’Neill, Bhupat Seemar
3.40pm: Mina – Rated Condition (TB) Dh105,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Royal Mews, Tadhg O’Shea, Bhupat Seemar
4.15pm: Aliyah – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,900m; Winner: Ursa Minor, Ray Dawson, Ahmad bin Harmash
4.50pm: Riviera Beach – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 2,200m; Winner: Woodditton, Saif Al Balushi, Ahmad bin Harmash
5.25pm: Riviera – Handicap (TB) Dh2,000 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Al Madhar, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
6pm: Creek Views – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Al Salt, Dane O’Neill, Erwan Charpy
WISH
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Freezer tips
- Always make sure food is completely cool before freezing.
- If you’re cooking in large batches, divide into either family-sized or individual portions to freeze.
- Ensure the food is well wrapped in foil or cling film. Even better, store in fully sealable, labelled containers or zip-lock freezer bags.
- The easiest and safest way to defrost items such as the stews and sauces mentioned is to do so in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh810,000
