Barcelona’s season was less than two minutes old when a black cat darted across the pitch and brought their game against Elche to a halt.
It’s not easy to make the Catalans’ new coach Luis Enrique smile, but the cat prompted the man wearing a cardigan and tie to do so. Luck is football’s great intangible, but Enrique was seemingly being cursed at the start of his spell in charge of a club which needs a change in fortune after a poor 2014 thus far.
Barca were booed off the field by their own fans after the final game of last season, but optimism returned following a close season where they’ve so far spent EU€153 million (Dh742m) on six new players. Three of those who cost a fee – Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo, French defender Jeremy Mathieu and Croatian midfield creator Ivan Rakitic – started in the usual 4-3-3 formation which found no room for Xavi, while striker Munir El Haddadi made his debut after a sleepless night worrying about whether he’d play. The top scorer in the Uefa Under-19 league last season, Munir doesn’t turn 19 until next month, but Enrique opined that he “had no fear” about starting him in front of a 68,105 crowd. Munir began in attack with Lionel Messi and another Barca league debutant, left-winger Rafinha, 21 and Enrique’s best player while on loan at Celta Vigo last season.
Munir struck the top of the crossbar in the 23rd minute after being set up by captain Andres Iniesta, who did likewise with a shot of his own from outside the area nine minutes later. Rakitic impressed with his range of fast and accurate passing, he covered a lot of ground and took free kicks. He appeared to be enjoying himself and later said: “If you play with the best players in the world, everything is easy.”
Messi, predictably, opened the scoring four minutes before half-time. The Argentine had three opponents around him but managed to create space to shoot past Przemyslaw Tyton.
Enrique didn’t smile, but pumped the air with his fist as he walked back to his bench. Two minutes later he returned to the bench with a changed expression. He’d watched defender Javier Mascherano trip Dutch striker Garry Rodrigues and Enrique’s reaction suggested that he knew a red card was coming.
Barca were reduced to 10, with Rafinha sacrificed for the defensive Marc Bartra at half-time. The numerical disadvantage was barely evident and Barca went 2-0 up in the 46th minute when Rakitic chipped the ball over the defence and Munir struck the ball goalwards with the outside of his left foot.
Despite being the league’s eighth best supported club with an average home attendance of 25,320 last season, Elche have La Liga’s lowest annual budget of just €15m. Barcelona’s is anticipated to be €500m, with Messi alone earning more than Elche’s entire squad.
Barca’s adoring fans say the Argentine is worth it, though he needs another great season after an indifferent 2014 so far. Messi started this term with intent and a man of the match performance, his second goal coming in the 63rd minute when he received a ball from Dani Alves and cut across three defenders before firing a low left footed shot to make it 3-0. It was the goal of the warm night and Camp Nou responded with chants of “Meeeesssssssi!” before indulging in a giant Mexican wave.
The strike saw Messi became the first player in La Liga history to score two or more goals in the opening game in four consecutive seasons. The Argentine has now scored two or more in 101 Barcelona games and is just six goals from equalling Zarra’s all-time La Liga goalscoring record.
“What do you want me to say about the best player in the world?” replied Enrique when asked about Messi’s performance. “Messi has been touched by the magic wand and he shows it every day. He surprises you in training.
“I’ve always said Messi is the best player in the world. In everything – scoring, assisting, defending, putting on pressure ...”
Enrique said he was delighted with the performance and also praised Munir, stating: “Let’s not exaggerate, he has a lot to do, but we have great expectations of him, let’s see if they are realised.”
Munir, who was born to Moroccan parents and raised in Madrid, received an ovation when he was replaced by Pedro in the 67th minute, by which time Barca’s 10 were in control and Enrique’s name was being sung by the crowd.
“Did I think the black cat could bring bad luck?” asked Enrique. “He passed by our bench, but he also passed by Elche’s bench, so ...”
And with that, Enrique smiled again, and not just because he still has Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique and Neymar to come into his side. It was a good first night at the office.
Follow us on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE
The Bio
Ram Buxani earned a salary of 125 rupees per month in 1959
Indian currency was then legal tender in the Trucial States.
He received the wages plus food, accommodation, a haircut and cinema ticket twice a month and actuals for shaving and laundry expenses
Buxani followed in his father’s footsteps when he applied for a job overseas
His father Jivat Ram worked in general merchandize store in Gibraltar and the Canary Islands in the early 1930s
Buxani grew the UAE business over several sectors from retail to financial services but is attached to the original textile business
He talks in detail about natural fibres, the texture of cloth, mirrorwork and embroidery
Buxani lives by a simple philosophy – do good to all
TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
Monday January 6 - UAE v Namibia
Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 - Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
Green ambitions
- Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
- Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
- Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
- Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
if you go
The flights
Fly to Rome with Etihad (www.etihad.ae) or Emirates (www.emirates.com) from Dh2,480 return including taxes. The flight takes six hours. Fly from Rome to Trapani with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) from Dh420 return including taxes. The flight takes one hour 10 minutes.
The hotels
The author recommends the following hotels for this itinerary. In Trapani, Ai Lumi (www.ailumi.it); in Marsala, Viacolvento (www.viacolventomarsala.it); and in Marsala Del Vallo, the Meliaresort Dimore Storiche (www.meliaresort.it).
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
THE LOWDOWN
Photograph
Rating: 4/5
Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies
Director: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Haltia.ai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202023%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Arto%20Bendiken%20and%20Talal%20Thabet%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20AI%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2041%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20About%20%241.7%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Self%2C%20family%20and%20friends%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
RECORD%20BREAKER
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20debutant%20for%20Barcelona%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2015%20years%20and%20290%20days%20v%20Real%20Betis%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20La%20Liga%20starter%20in%20the%2021st%20century%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%20years%20and%2038%20days%20v%20Cadiz%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20player%20to%20register%20an%20assist%20in%20La%20Liga%20in%20the%2021st%20century%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%20years%20and%2045%20days%20v%20Villarreal%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20debutant%20for%20Spain%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2016%20years%20and%2057%20days%20v%20Georgia%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20goalscorer%20for%20Spain%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2016%20years%20and%2057%20days%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EYoungest%20player%20to%20score%20in%20a%20Euro%20qualifier%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2016%20years%20and%2057%20days%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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