Barcelona will look to pick themselves up from Wednesday's draining Uefa Champions League exit to Inter Milan by taking a giant step towards securing their 28th La Liga crown this weekend.
The Catalans are four points clear of Real Madrid with four matches left heading into Sunday's clash at the Olympic Stadium, but go into the game having been beaten 7-6 over two thrilling semi-final legs by the Italians.
Real Madrid know a fourth defeat this season by their bitter rivals will all but end their title hopes and mean Carlo Ancelotti will be denied a trophy in his final season as coach.
While no official announcement has been made, the 65-year-old Italian is set to leave at the end of the campaign with former Real midfielder Xabi Alonso poised to take over.
Alonso has revealed that he will be leaving his current role as manager of Bayer Leverkusen after the final two games of the Bundesliga season.
“I read that Xabi is leaving Bayer Leverkusen, where he did a fantastic job,” Ancelotti said on Friday ahead of the Clasico. “He has all the doors open because he has shown that he is one of the best coaches in the world.”
The 43-year-old's spell in Germany has been a hugely successful one having led the club to a historic double last season when Leverkusen won their first ever Bundesliga title, breaking Bayern Munich's iron grip on the Meisterschale.
They finished the league campaign unbeaten in 34 games and came close to a remarkable treble but were beaten by Atlanta in the Europa League final – their first loss in 51 matches.
Alonso has been unable to repeat that success this season though as Vincent Kompany's Bayern regained the title last weekend. Bayern also crushed Leverkusen 5-0 on aggregate in the Champions League last-16.
Alonso – who took over Leverkusen in October 2022 with the club second from bottom after eight games – was linked with both the Bayern and Liverpool jobs last summer but opted to stay put.
But the Spaniard has now decided the time is right to move on, making the announcement ahead of his final home game against Borussia Dortmund on Sunday.
“This week the club and I have agreed that these two games are going to be my last as Bayer Leverkusen coach,” Alonso said on Friday.
“It is not a moment to talk too much about the future because we want to have a proper farewell on Sunday here for some players, for myself, and it is the right moment to announce it.
“We have to enjoy this moment with mixed emotions. It is emotional, I spoke this morning with the players, the staff, so many people who have helped me during an unbelievable, fantastic three years.
“Now is a moment to share it with the fans in this stadium where I have lived great emotions and become what I am right now.
“Football is about the moment and I think is a good moment for everyone. Let's enjoy it … We can be happy and proud of what we have achieved always with the good feeling we're taking the club in the right direction.”
Alonso's contract does not end until 2026 but he revealed that the club had agreed to terminate the deal at the end of the season.
“The second season was a historic season, it was a dream season with great nights, great games and we made history,” he said.
“This season has been the most challenging one. When we had to fulfil expectations, when we were playing in the Champions League, where we were playing to try to give our best and when we don't make a final we are disappointed.”
When asked about what his next move will be, he added: “It's not the moment to talk too much about the future because now that we know, we want to have a proper farewell on Sunday here for some players, for myself.”
Ancelotti, meanwhile, is reported to have reached an agreement with Real over the terms of his exit.
Real were last month knocked out of the Champions League by Arsenal at the quarter-final stage and lost to Barca in the Copa del Rey final - defeats which have hastened Ancelotti's departure.
His second spell at Madrid has seen the veteran coach win the Fifa Club World Cup, Uefa Super Cup, two La Liga titles, as well as a Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup.
And now Ancelotti will be hoping his reign does not end with a whimper and that he can stay in the running for what would be a 16th major trophy over two spells in the Spanish capital.
“The honeymoon with this club never ends, it continues forever,” added Ancelotti on Friday, when he again refused to comment on his future.
“I think that Real Madrid, like Milan before, are the teams that stay with me given the time I have spent here.
"At the beginning there is passion, and when that fades other feelings emerge, a sense of tender care. My honeymoon with Real Madrid will last for as long as I live.”
The former AC Milan, Chelsea and Bayern Munich manager has been strongly linked with taking over as the Brazil national team manager and could be in charge before the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in June.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
More on animal trafficking
MATCH INFO:
Second Test
Pakistan v Australia, Tuesday-Saturday, 10am daily at Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Entrance is free
FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Saint-Etienne v Montpellier (10.45pm)
Saturday
Monaco v Caen (7pm)
Amiens v Bordeaux (10pm)
Angers v Toulouse (10pm)
Metz v Dijon (10pm)
Nantes v Guingamp (10pm)
Rennes v Lille (10pm)
Sunday
Nice v Strasbourg (5pm)
Troyes v Lyon (7pm)
Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (11pm)
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Sweet%20Tooth
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INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Vijay Shankar, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Siraj and Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper)
FIXTURES
UAE’s remaining fixtures in World Cup qualification R2
Oct 8: Malaysia (h)
Oct 13: Indonesia (a)
Nov 12: Thailand (h)
Nov 17: Vietnam (h)
Superpower%20
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Duterte Harry: Fire and Fury in the Philippines
Jonathan Miller, Scribe Publications
Australia World Cup squad
Aaron Finch (capt), Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jhye Richardson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
NINE WINLESS GAMES
Arsenal 2-2 Crystal Palace (Oct 27, PL)
Liverpool 5-5 Arsenal (Oct 30, EFL)
Arsenal 1-1 Wolves (Nov 02, PL)
Vitoria Guimaraes 1-1 Arsenal (Nov 6, Europa)
Leicester 2-0 Arsenal (Nov 9, PL)
Arsenal 2-2 Southampton (Nov 23, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt (Nov 28, Europa)
Norwich 2-2 Arsenal (Dec 01, PL)
Arsenal 1-2 Brighton (Dec 05, PL)
Funk Wav Bounces Vol.1
Calvin Harris
Columbia
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
ON%20TRACK
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Kandahar%20
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Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
