Everton 4 Leicester City 2
Everton: Davies (1'), R Lukaku (23', 57'), Jagielka (41')
Leciester: Slimani (4'), Albrighton (10')
Man of the Match: Romelu Lukaku (Everton)
So Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti do not have unlikely company in their elite band. Managers who have won the Uefa Champions League five times between them remain alone in tasting victory in each of their first six Premier League matches.
Yet the Champions League also accounted for the end of Craig Shakespeare’s perfect start. Prioritisation was a sign of progress, a weakened team overwhelmed by Everton’s attacking power but rendered possible by a revival that has made relegation a remote threat.
And so, for the first time since a defeat in Seville was followed by Claudio Ranieri’s sacking, Leicester City lost. Once again, a trip to Spain had consequences. Leicester face Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. They made five changes, and mirroring their fortunes under Ranieri in autumn, showed they do not possess the depth for squad rotation.
Romelu Lukaku highlighted his capacity to sniff out any sense of frailty with a double to take his tally to 10 goals in five Goodison Park games. He has propelled Everton to seven successive home league wins, which have yielded 26 goals.
Leicester briefly threatened to end that sequence, showing the spirit they have recaptured under Shakespeare, but shambolic defending offered more reminders of the defeats that led to Ranieri’s dismissal than the resistance that rendered them champions.
“We were done by two set plays, which was disappointing,” said Shakespeare, and an inability to defend them in the absence of the injured Wes Morgan may play into Atletico’s hands, even if it is safe to assume the match in the Vicente Calderon will not replicate the glorious mayhem of this first half. “It was like a basketball game,” Shakespeare said.
“Crazy start,” Everton manager Ronald Koeman said and, after Shakespeare jettisoned the blueprint of unchanged teams comprised of title winners, a reconfigured defence was breached after 31 seconds, Tom Davies equalling Chelsea’s Pedro with the quickest goal of the Premier League season.
Leicester responded in kind. Demarai Gray embarked upon a solo run. Islam Slimani was the beneficiary as he slid a shot under Joel Robles. When Marc Albrighton whipped in a free kick that left Robles flailing at thin air, they had scored twice despite only enjoying 18 per cent of possession.
That was not a failsafe formula; not against the predatory Lukaku. When he headed in Ross Barkley’s enticing cross – “a great assist,” Koeman said – he became the first player to score in eight consecutive games at Goodison Park since Fred Pickering in 1965.
He continues to etch his way into Everton history and into the minds of potential buyers.
“We will try to do everything to keep him here,” vowed Koeman and his double act with Barkley continues to concentrate minds at Goodison Park – “they played outstanding,” their manager added – not least because each is yet to sign a new deal. Koeman suggested Barkley’s situation is binary.
“We offer him a new contract and [there are] two possibilities: one, he signs and, if he doesn’t, we need to sell the player,” Koeman said. “It is simple.”
Everton may have to savour his alliance with Lukaku while they can. The striker increased his chances of winning the Golden Boot by powering in a 23rd goal of the season. Barkley should have scored himself but, when Kasper Schmeichel saved superbly, the excellent Mirallas took the resulting corner.
Phil Jagielka headed it in, a player who had gone 671 days without a Premier League goal scoring a second in the last week.
He is resurgent. Shakespeare was defiant. No longer sharing a mantle with two of the managerial greats, and having lost his impeccable record at the helm, he said: “We have been on a really good run. We have to go on another.”
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The specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: nine-speed
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: Dh848,000
On sale: now
RESULTS
1.45pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,200m
Winner: Lady Parma, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
2.15pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,200m
Winner: Tabernas, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash.
2.45pm: Handicap Dh95,000 1,200m
Winner: Night Castle, Connor Beasley, Satish Seemar.
3.15pm: Handicap Dh120,000 1,400m
Winner: Mystique Moon, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
3.45pm: Handicap Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: Mutawakked, Szczepan Mazur, Musabah Al Muhairi.
4.15pm: Handicap Dh90,000 1,800m
Winner: Tafaakhor, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
4.45pm: Handicap Dh80,000 1,950m
Winner: Cranesbill, Fabrice Veron, Erwan Charpy.
MO
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More from Mohammed Alardhi
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
MATCH INFO
What: India v Afghanistan, first Test
When: Starts Thursday
Where: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengalaru
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
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
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Tips for entertaining with ease
· Set the table the night before. It’s a small job but it will make you feel more organised once done.
· As the host, your mood sets the tone. If people arrive to find you red-faced and harried, they’re not going to relax until you do. Take a deep breath and try to exude calm energy.
· Guests tend to turn up thirsty. Fill a big jug with iced water and lemon or lime slices and encourage people to help themselves.
· Have some background music on to help create a bit of ambience and fill any initial lulls in conversations.
· The meal certainly doesn’t need to be ready the moment your guests step through the door, but if there’s a nibble or two that can be passed around it will ward off hunger pangs and buy you a bit more time in the kitchen.
· You absolutely don’t have to make every element of the brunch from scratch. Take inspiration from our ideas for ready-made extras and by all means pick up a store-bought dessert.
UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)
SPEC SHEET
Display: 10.9" Liquid Retina IPS, 2360 x 1640, 264ppi, wide colour, True Tone, Apple Pencil support
Chip: Apple M1, 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Memory: 64/256GB storage; 8GB RAM
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, Smart HDR
Video: 4K @ 25/25/30/60fps, full HD @ 25/30/60fps, slo-mo @ 120/240fps
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR, Centre Stage; full HD @ 25/30/60fps
Audio: Stereo speakers
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Price: Wi-Fi – Dh2,499 (64GB) / Dh3,099 (256GB); cellular – Dh3,099 (64GB) / Dh3,699 (256GB)
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Premier Futsal 2017 Finals
Al Wasl Football Club; six teams, five-a-side
Delhi Dragons: Ronaldinho
Bengaluru Royals: Paul Scholes
Mumbai Warriors: Ryan Giggs
Chennai Ginghams: Hernan Crespo
Telugu Tigers: Deco
Kerala Cobras: Michel Salgado
Day 5, Abu Dhabi Test: At a glance
Moment of the day When Dilruwan Perera dismissed Yasir Shah to end Pakistan’s limp resistance, the Sri Lankans charged around the field with the fevered delirium of a side not used to winning. Trouble was, they had not. The delivery was deemed a no ball. Sri Lanka had a nervy wait, but it was merely a stay of execution for the beleaguered hosts.
Stat of the day – 5 Pakistan have lost all 10 wickets on the fifth day of a Test five times since the start of 2016. It is an alarming departure for a side who had apparently erased regular collapses from their resume. “The only thing I can say, it’s not a mitigating excuse at all, but that’s a young batting line up, obviously trying to find their way,” said Mickey Arthur, Pakistan’s coach.
The verdict Test matches in the UAE are known for speeding up on the last two days, but this was extreme. The first two innings of this Test took 11 sessions to complete. The remaining two were done in less than four. The nature of Pakistan’s capitulation at the end showed just how difficult the transition is going to be in the post Misbah-ul-Haq era.
