In the time of football behind-closed-doors, Camp Nou feels like the emptiest stadium of all, with more vacant seats than almost any other arena.
The training ground also looks emptier than the new Barcelona head coach Ronald Koeman would have liked, now that the transfer window has closed with an apologetic whimper.
Koeman wanted more buys than the club managed. There are employees, on vast salaries, he would have preferred to wave goodbye to. As Monday’s transfer deadline neared, Barcelona baulked at the cost, an initial €20m ($23m), of a new striker Koeman had petitioned for, Lyon’s Memphis Depay.
They stalled at the similar price asked for a central defender who wanted the move, Manchester City’s Eric Garcia.
So it was that a summer of trading which began with a bombshell – Lionel Messi’s request to leave – ended with the sound of fireworks fizzling out before they launched.
The good news, for the trophy-winning potential of Koeman-era Barcelona is that Messi remained, at least for one more season. The bad news is that he will lead a squad that looks lop-sided.
Koeman knows Memphis from working together with Holland’s national team. He was the preferred choice to fill a large gap left by Luis Suarez, who joined Atletico Madrid for a nominal deferred fee, easing a Barca a wage-bill that last season was the highest in club football.
After extended negotiations, Lyon lowered the asking price. Still there was no deal, and it became clearer to Koeman the Barcelona board, led by a beleaguered president Josep Maria Bartomeu, were only ready to take on Memphis if another high-earner could be shifted – Ousmane Dembele.
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20 most expensive transfers of the summer
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Dembele, who was offered to Manchester United on loan, ahead of a possible permanent deal, proved too hard to move on. The gifted France winger’s fitness record is why: In three seasons since his €145m arrival from Borussia Dortmund, he has started a mere 35 matches.
So Memphis stayed in France, while Dembele lingers in Catalonia, an awkward reminder of a time when almost every transfer window brought into Camp Nou a €100m-plus star and money was plentiful. After Dembele, came Philippe Coutinho, at over €160m, from Liverpool; and Antoine Griezmann, €120m from Atletico.
Griezmann has worked out better than his French compatriot Dembele, although not so well that his national head coach, Didier Deschamps, does not see him as a round peg in a square hole at Barca. “I can’t understand why he is not playing in a more central role,” said Deschamps just as the transfer window was closing. “I don’t think Antoine is happy with his situation at Barcelona.”
I can't understand why he is not playing in a more central role
That central role will always be Messi’s as long as Messi chooses. And Suarez will always be remembered as Messi’s favourite striking partner. Just ahead of Neymar, whose 2017 sale for €222m to Paris Saint-Germain partly funded the extravagant spend on Dembele, Coutinho and Griezmann. Griezmann’s unenviable challenge is try to meet the standards set by Suarez and Neymar.
He has some new allies. Barcelona did sign Sergino Dest, an attacking right-back; Miralem Pjanic has arrived, in what was effectively a swap for midfielder Arthur with Juventus, and his midfield vision should be an asset.
But overall the club look like losers in the transfer window, after a season of many losses. They lost their hold on the Liga title; they lost 8-2 to Bayern Munich in the Champions League; they have lost their home crowds, thanks to the pandemic, which is a key income stream.
They have lost a troop of worldly footballers, from Suarez to Arturo Vidal to Ivan Rakitic, in order to lighten the salary load, and, just as the window closed, they lost the midfielder Rafinha, who left for PSG for a nominal fee.
That’s the same PSG who have been outplaying Barcelona in the transfer market for three years, who snatched Neymar and have rebuffed Barca bids for Angel di Maria, Marquinhos, Marco Verratti and, last summer, blocked a flimsy effort to bring Neymar back.
City looked at Barcelona’s bid for Garcia the same way: they firmly told the bidders they were not offering enough, even though Garcia seems set on running his contract down so he can leave for free next June.
One bright spot may be Coutinho, who spent last season unwanted and on loan at Treble-winning Bayern Munich. Barcelona had tried to offload him. No other club would match his vast wage.
But the Brazilian has started this season well, and looks ready to make a fresh start, seize his second chance to make that massive transfer fee look less misguided.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
At a glance
- 20,000 new jobs for Emiratis over three years
- Dh300 million set aside to train 18,000 jobseekers in new skills
- Managerial jobs in government restricted to Emiratis
- Emiratis to get priority for 160 types of job in private sector
- Portion of VAT revenues will fund more graduate programmes
- 8,000 Emirati graduates to do 6-12 month replacements in public or private sector on a Dh10,000 monthly wage - 40 per cent of which will be paid by government
Karwaan
Producer: Ronnie Screwvala
Director: Akarsh Khurana
Starring: Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan, Mithila Palkar
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Results
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
The five pillars of Islam
Arabian Gulf Cup FINAL
Al Nasr 2
(Negredo 1, Tozo 50)
Shabab Al Ahli 1
(Jaber 13)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Shakuntala Devi'
Starring: Vidya Balan, Sanya Malhotra
Director: Anu Menon
Rating: Three out of five stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Frida%20
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The specs
Price: From Dh529,000
Engine: 5-litre V8
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Power: 520hp
Torque: 625Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.8L/100km
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Emiratisation at work
Emiratisation was introduced in the UAE more than 10 years ago
It aims to boost the number of citizens in the workforce particularly in the private sector.
Growing the number of Emiratis in the workplace will help the UAE reduce dependence on overseas workers
The Cabinet in December last year, approved a national fund for Emirati jobseekers and guaranteed citizens working in the private sector a comparable pension
President Sheikh Khalifa has described Emiratisation as “a true measure for success”.
During the UAE’s 48th National Day, Sheikh Khalifa named education, entrepreneurship, Emiratisation and space travel among cornerstones of national development
More than 80 per cent of Emiratis work in the federal or local government as per 2017 statistics
The Emiratisation programme includes the creation of 20,000 new jobs for UAE citizens
UAE citizens will be given priority in managerial positions in the government sphere
The purpose is to raise the contribution of UAE nationals in the job market and create a diverse workforce of citizens
ICC Awards for 2021
MEN
Cricketer of the Year – Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Test Cricketer of the Year – Joe Root (England)
WOMEN
Cricketer of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ODI Cricketer of the Year – Lizelle Lee (South Africa)
T20 Cricketer of the Year – Tammy Beaumont (England)
The years Ramadan fell in May
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg
Ajax v Real Madrid, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports
UAE-based players
Goodlands Riders: Jamshaid Butt, Ali Abid, JD Mahesh, Vibhor Shahi, Faizan Asif, Nadeem Rahim
Rose Hill Warriors: Faraz Sheikh, Ashok Kumar, Thabreez Ali, Janaka Chathuranga, Muzammil Afridi, Ameer Hamza
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SHAITTAN
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Jebel Ali Dragons 26 Bahrain 23
Dragons
Tries: Hayes, Richards, Cooper
Cons: Love
Pens: Love 3
Bahrain
Tries: Kenny, Crombie, Tantoh
Cons: Phillips
Pens: Phillips 2
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
MATCH INFO
Azerbaijan 0
Wales 2 (Moore 10', Wilson 34')
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Directed: Smeep Kang
Produced: Soham Rockstar Entertainment; SKE Production
Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Jimmy Sheirgill, Sunny Singh, Omkar Kapoor, Rajesh Sharma
Rating: Two out of five stars
Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
The five pillars of Islam
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
More on animal trafficking
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
