Once the clocks went back to mark the beginning of winter, the Serie A table began to take up its customary shape. The summer romances of the early weeks are fading.
Cesena, who shot briefly to the summit on their return to the top flight, are now embedded in the relegation zone. Roma and Fiorentina have climbed out of their crises. And Lazio, though still top, lost for the second time.
Above all, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus are all, now, within the top four. The cream rises, and when it does, there is grumbling from the 16 or 17 underdogs across the peninsula. This was the weekend when the heavyweights got lucky. And it was the weekend when television viewers became nostalgic for "la moviola".
La moviola is an institution in Italian football. It is the slow-motion scrutiny of refereeing controversies.
Analyses of where and how match officials may have got things right or wrong (usually, the focus is on the wrong calls) are not unique to Italian television, but in the age of wall-to-wall football broadcasting, Italy traditionally devoted more time than any football nation to dissecting, with cameras, the decisions of referees and their assistants.
Until last July, when RAI, the state broadcaster, announced that its highlights shows would no longer have la moviola as such a central feature.
La moviola was popular with fans who liked to nourish a grudge. It was unpopular with referees, whose slip-ups would be endless replayed and criticised. Managers regarded it as intrusive - though sometimes useful - and when RAI made their statement, it was welcomed.
Carlo Ancelotti, the former Milan head coach who now works in England, where refereeing controversies are highlighted but tend not to fester for so long, said the curtailing of la moviola "would have a civilising effect" on Serie A.
Yet taking la moviola off the biggest public platform does not make controversies go away.
In the era of the internet download, of YouTube and Twitter, almost anybody can stage their own moviola and build a community of complainers around a decision. And by the end of Sunday, Lazio, Brescia and Cesena supporters had all mobilised around their moviola moments.
Lazio lost the Rome derby thanks to two Roma penalties, converted by first Marco Borriello and then Mirko Vucinic.
According to Edy Reja, the defeated head coach, the outcome would have radically altered had Emidio Morganti, the referee, applied the correct standards when Roma's John Arne Riise held back Lazio's Stefano Mauri. Roma led 1-0 at that stage.
Massimo Ficcadenti, the head coach of Cesena, saw his team have a 1-0 lead in Turin wiped out by a Juventus penalty, converted by Alessandro Del Piero.
Ficcadenti reckoned the tussling between Max Pellegrino and Juve's Leonardo Bonucci had been started by Bonucci. Pellegrino evidently felt angry, too. Ten minutes later he was sent off for a tackle on Simone Pepe.
Depleted Cesena conceded a second goal almost immediately, and a late third as they tired.
When Juve get a lucky break, moviola addicts remember that fans are excessively interested in refereeing decisions because there has, in recent years, been cause to suspect bias among officials.
Juve were relegated four years ago because their directors had been found to be influencing the appointments of match officials to certain games.
There is a will to improve refereeing in Italy, and to support officials. Milos Krasic, the Juventus winger, missed Sunday's game with a suspension for diving.
In the case of Samuel Eto'o's fall in the Brescia penalty area at the weekend, there may not have been an intention to mislead the official, but a quick, DIY moviola endorses the initial impression he simply lost his balance.
The penalty allowed Inter to salvage a point and if they continue to get the lucky breaks like these, the champions will stay confident they can retain their title.
sports@thenational.ae
Bio:
Favourite Quote: Prophet Mohammad's quotes There is reward for kindness to every living thing and A good man treats women with honour
Favourite Hobby: Serving poor people
Favourite Book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite food: Fish and vegetables
Favourite place to visit: London
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKinetic%207%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rick%20Parish%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Clean%20cooking%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self-funded%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
RACE CARD
5pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Purebred Arabian Cup Conditions (PA); Dh 200,000 (Turf) 1,600m
5.30pm: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Cup Conditions (PA); Dh 200,000 (T) 1,600m
6pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Cup Listed (TB); Dh 380,000 (T) 1,600m
6.30pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Group 3 (PA); Dh 500,000 (T) 1,600m
7pm: Sheikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan National Day Jewel Crown Group 1 (PA); Dh 5,000,000 (T) 2,200m
7.30pm: Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Racing Festival Handicap (PA); Dh 150,000 (T) 1,400m
8pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 100,000 (T); 1,400m
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.0-litre%20six-cylinder%20turbo%20(BMW%20B58)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20340hp%20at%206%2C500rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20500Nm%20from%201%2C600-4%2C500rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20ZF%208-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E0-100kph%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204.2sec%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20267kph%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh462%2C189%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EWarranty%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030-month%2F48%2C000k%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
SM Town Live is on Friday, April 6 at Autism Rocks Arena, Dubai. Tickets are Dh375 at www.platinumlist.net
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
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
