It’s a quirk of timing, or perhaps the universe’s way of mocking Tottenham Hotspur, that Harry Kane has finally ended his long wait for silverware in the same month Spurs could, at long last, end theirs.
Kane, that most reliable of goalscorers, now has something tangible to show for his labours – a Bundesliga shield, as much a reward for loyalty as for leaving when he did. The irony, of course, is unmistakable. A man who could not win a trophy in 14 years at Tottenham now has one without kicking a ball for Bayern Munich, thanks to Bayer Leverkusen's draw against Freiburg on Sunday.
And while Kane collects his long-overdue medal in Munich, Spurs are staring down the barrel of a Europa League semi-final second leg in Bodo – a fixture that feels as though it was dreamt up by a mischievous footballing god with a taste for the absurd.
Yes, Tottenham hold a 3-1 lead, but this is Spurs. Leads are illusions, and history does not ride quietly in the back seat. Neither does the Arctic wind.
Thursday’s trip to Bodo/Glimt is no gimme. Ulrik Saltnes’ late penalty in the first leg didn’t just trim the deficit – it lit a match under a tie that had started to look like a formality. Now Spurs must survive 90 minutes (or more) on a surface they don’t trust, in a stadium that looks more Conference South than Europa League, against a side that has made a habit of embarrassing those with larger wage bills and loftier reputations.
Ask Celtic – specifically, Postecoglou’s Celtic – about that. The current Spurs boss has already suffered at the hands of Kjetil Knutsen’s yellow-shirted insurgents, losing both legs of the tie in 2022 with little more than frostbite and regret to show for it. If anyone in the Tottenham dugout understands the perils of underestimating Bodo, it’s him.
Then there’s the pitch. The artificial surface at the Aspmyra Stadion isn’t just unfamiliar – it’s a leveller. One that suits Bodo’s style, their pressing, and their pace. The elements help too. It may be May, but in Bodo, that means wind, rain, and maybe snow, if the weather feels cheeky.
"It’s going to be a culture shock for Spurs fans coming to Bodo from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium," warned former Norway goalkeeper Erik Thorstvedt, who spent eight years in North London and was part of the Tottenham side that won the 1991 FA Cup.
"The difference couldn’t be greater. They play on an artificial surface. I wouldn’t say the stadium is intimidating, but it’s different. It can be windy, rainy, you may even get snow in May, you never know!" he told the club's website.
"They are looking at building a new stadium, because this is like an antique. Spurs fans will get there and think, ‘honestly, is this a semi-final of the Europa League?’ but, for me, it still has that charm.”
Overturning Tottenham's lead is by no means beyond Knutsen's side. Already this season they have beaten Porto, Braga, Besiktas, FC Twente, Olympiacos and Lazio at home. The disparity between theirs and Tottenham's playing budget is as wide as the journey from Bodo to Oslo – the Norwegian capital – 1,200 kilometres, as the crow flies. Taking the scalp of Spurs and becoming the first Norwegian club to reach a major European final is all the incentive needed.
Bodo were poor in the first leg but welcome back from suspension Patrick Berg as well as Hakon Evjen and Andreas Helmersen.
The Berg name is royalty at Bodo and the return of their influential captain will be welcomed by Knutsen. Bodo surrendered the midfield battle to the tenacious Rodrigo Bentancur and Yves Bissouma too easily in North London and will need to make the artificial pitch at Aspmyra as inhospitable as the weather – the forecast is for rain with temperatures at 6ºC – if they are to claw their way back.
Spurs, meanwhile, must make do without the services of creator-in-chief James Maddison. The midfielder scored a stunning goal against Bodo in the first leg but a knee injury picked up against the Norwegians saw him withdrawn midway through the second half of that game and he failed to see out Sunday's 1-1 draw against West Ham United with the same problem. He is expected to miss the rest of the season, ruling him out of the May 21 final should Spurs get there.
With Son Heung-min also a major doubt, the news over Dominic Solanke's availability is more encouraging, with Postecoglou confident the England striker will lead the line against Bodo after being rested against West Ham after picking up a knock in the first leg.
Spurs have not reached a major European final since 2019 when they met Liverpool in the Uefa Champions League decider. To get there they needed a 41-minute miracle from Lucas Moura. The Brazilian scored the winning goal – his third of the match – in the sixth minute of injury time to see off Ajax 3-2 in Amsterdam to see Spurs progress on away goals.
And yet, there’s a sense this campaign matters more. Despite Spurs' struggles domestically, there’s belief in their forays to foreign lands. And if they can weather this storm – literal and metaphorical – they’ll have earned a final in Bilbao and the chance to end the silence that has echoed around their trophy cabinet since 2008.
Kane has his medal. Spurs may yet get theirs. But only if they remember that Europe never gifts anything easily – especially not in the Arctic Circle.
More coverage from the Future Forum
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5
Checks continue
A High Court judge issued an interim order on Friday suspending a decision by Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots to direct a stop to Brexit agri-food checks at Northern Ireland ports.
Mr Justice Colton said he was making the temporary direction until a judicial review of the minister's unilateral action this week to order a halt to port checks that are required under the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Civil servants have yet to implement the instruction, pending legal clarity on their obligations, and checks are continuing.
PRESIDENTS CUP
Draw for Presidents Cup fourball matches on Thursday (Internationals first mention). All times UAE:
02.32am (Thursday): Marc Leishman/Joaquin Niemann v Tiger Woods/Justin Thomas
02.47am (Thursday): Adam Hadwin/Im Sung-jae v Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay
03.02am (Thursday): Adam Scott/An Byeong-hun v Bryson DeChambeau/Tony Finau
03.17am (Thursday): Hideki Matsuyama/CT Pan v Webb Simpson/Patrick Reed
03.32am (Thursday): Abraham Ancer/Louis Oosthuizen v Dustin Johnson/Gary Woodland
Traits of Chinese zodiac animals
Tiger:independent, successful, volatile
Rat:witty, creative, charming
Ox:diligent, perseverent, conservative
Rabbit:gracious, considerate, sensitive
Dragon:prosperous, brave, rash
Snake:calm, thoughtful, stubborn
Horse:faithful, energetic, carefree
Sheep:easy-going, peacemaker, curious
Monkey:family-orientated, clever, playful
Rooster:honest, confident, pompous
Dog:loyal, kind, perfectionist
Boar:loving, tolerant, indulgent
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
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
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.
More from Aya Iskandarani
CREW
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Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
THE APPRENTICE
Director: Ali Abbasi
Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 3/5
