Romelu Lukaku's club record move to Inter Milan from Manchester United was the headline deal of a typically busy final day of the Premier League's summer transfer window on Thursday.
After weeks of protracted negotiations, the 26-year-old Belgian striker completed a deal reported to be worth £74 million (Dh330m), making him the third most expensive player in Italian football history, behind only Juventus forwards Cristiano Ronaldo and Gonzalo Higuain.
"Inter were the only club I wanted, because Inter is Not For Everyone. I’m here to bring the Nerazzurri back to the top," Lukaku, who signed a five-year contract, said referring to the San Siro club's slogan.
Lukaku joined United in 2017 for £75m and went on to score 42 goals in 96 games. He scored 15 goals in 45 appearances last season, but fell behind Marcus Rashford in the pecking order following Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's arrival as manager.
While the Belgian was no longer considered first-choice, his exit has left United with a shortage of forward options after the Premier League club opted not to make any new signings on deadline day.
Croatian World Cup finalist Mario Mandzukic was linked with a move to Old Trafford, but after tentative talks, United opted not to pursue a deal for the 33-year-old Juventus player.
United were also reportedly interested in former Tottenham Hotspur target man Fernando Llorente, but ultimately nothing materialised.
Llorente's old club proved to be one of the busiest on Thursday after Spurs completed the signings of England under-21 full-back Ryan Sessegnon and Argentina midfielder Giovani Lo Celso.
Sessegnon was signed from Championship side Fulham for a reported £25m and the 19-year-old has signed a five-year contract with the option of a sixth year, while Lo Celso joined on loan from Real Betis with the option of a permanent move at the end of the season.
"I can't wait to get started at Spurs," Sessegnon said in his introduction video. "It's a young team, an exciting team on the up. This is the place to be."
However, one deal that did not go through for Tottenham was for Juventus forward Paulo Dybala. The 25-year-old Argentine looked set to move to the Champions League finalists after the two clubs agreed on a fee of €70m (Dh288.2m), only for the deal to fall through over personal terms and image rights.
Across North London, Arsenal landed long-term target Kieran Tierney from Celtic, the left-back signing a"long-term deal" after the Scottish champions accepted a £25m transfer fee.
“We’re delighted Kieran is joining us," Arsenal manager Unai Emery said. "He’s a very talented player who will continue to improve. He increases our options defensively and I look forward to him joining our group.”
Newcastle United managed to complete two signings on Thursday, with the return of Andy Carroll to his boyhood club giving fans reason to celebrate. The England international endured an injury-hit six years at West Ham United and has moved to St James' Park on a one-year contract.
“I enjoyed the time I spent here, and hopefully I can carry on where I left off," Carroll said. "When I left eight-and-a-half years ago, I was scoring goals and I was enjoying my football. It’s been a pretty tough time since then, and I just want to get back to that.
“I know it’s home. I’ve played here, I’ve spoken to the fans – I am a fan – and my family is here. For me to get back to where I was, I think this is the only place for me.”
Newcastle also signed Sweden international full-back Emil Krafth from Amiens on a four-year deal.
Elsewhere, Leicester City pushed it fine but got a deal over the line for midfielder Dennis Praet, signing the Belgian midfielder from Sampdoria for a reported £18m and on a four-year contract.
Meanwhile, Chelsea midfielder Danny Drinkwater secured a loan move to Burnley, while Aaron Mooy joined Brighton & Hove Albion for the season from Huddersfield Town.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Results
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Tori Amos
Native Invader
Decca
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
World Sevens Series standing after Dubai
1. South Africa
2. New Zealand
3. England
4. Fiji
5. Australia
6. Samoa
7. Kenya
8. Scotland
9. France
10. Spain
11. Argentina
12. Canada
13. Wales
14. Uganda
15. United States
16. Russia
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Women%E2%80%99s%20T20%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier
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How to tell if your child is being bullied at school
Sudden change in behaviour or displays higher levels of stress or anxiety
Shows signs of depression or isolation
Ability to sleep well diminishes
Academic performance begins to deteriorate
Changes in eating habits
Struggles to concentrate
Refuses to go to school
Behaviour changes and is aggressive towards siblings
Begins to use language they do not normally use
If you go…
Emirates launched a new daily service to Mexico City this week, flying via Barcelona from Dh3,995.
Emirati citizens are among 67 nationalities who do not require a visa to Mexico. Entry is granted on arrival for stays of up to 180 days.
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh289,000
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
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
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
Christopher Robin
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Haley Atwell, Jim Cummings, Peter Capaldi
Three stars
Manchester City 4
Otamendi (52) Sterling (59) Stones (67) Brahim Diaz (81)
Real Madrid 1
Oscar (90)
ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA
Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi
Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
