LONDON // From getting the cold shoulder at third-tier Wolverhampton Wanderers, 30-year-old defender Roger Johnson is set to make his West Ham United debut at Manchester City in the League Cup semi-final on Wednesday.
Johnson, who played in the Premier League for Wolves and Birmingham City, was not even given a squad number at the start of the season and was subsequently loaned to struggling Championship side Sheffield Wednesday.
However, after agreeing to a loan deal with injury-hit West Ham on Monday, the centre-half has the chance to impress against a City side boasting a formidable array of attacking firepower.
“He is very determined and very excited about the opportunity he’s got after being frozen out at Wolves and pursuing his career at Sheffield Wednesday recently,” manager Sam Allardyce said ahead of Wednesday’s first leg.
“Our central defensive situation has been so difficult recently and it’s one of the main reasons why we haven’t got the results we wanted.
“The one big thing about Roger is his Premier League experience at Birmingham City. His height in terms of being a central defender has been one of our weak points recently, and his desire to come and show he has still got the capabilities to play at this level.
“We are going into one of the biggest games of the season with somebody of his experience, height and aerial dominance against, let’s face it, one of the biggest teams in the Premier League.”
West Ham are only one place off the foot of the Premier League, and a weakened line-up was thrashed 5-0 by second-tier Nottingham Forest in the third round of the FA Cup on Sunday.
Even diehard fans give them little chance of toppling City over two legs, but Allardyce said they hope to at least get back to Upton Park with a chance to advance.
“We don’t have to beat them on Wednesday night. We have to come back with something realistic to beat them at home if we can,” he said. “We have to stay as focused as we can and we have to nullify what is a great attacking force.”
Allardyce said that striker Andy Carroll will soon be available, having been sidelined by a foot injury since completing his permanent £15 million (Dh90.48m) move from Liverpool in June.
“Andy is training today,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll see him on the bench in the next week or so.”
For City, winger Jesus Navas will sit out the contest with a knee complaint.
Manager Manuel Pellegrini says the problem is not serious, but he does not want to risk the Spaniard. “It is not very important, it is just a precaution,” he said.
Top scorer Sergio Aguero remains on the sideline, but he is back in training and on course to return sometime this month.
Aguero has been out since suffering a calf injury in a 6-3 win over Arsenal on December 14.
“He is working, he is training,” Pellegrini said. “It is very good news. All players recovering from injuries is good news, especially a player who is as important as Kun Aguero.”
Pellegrini is yet to decide which goalkeeper will play in the cup match. Costel Pantilimon, who recently reverted to being second choice after a spell in the side for Joe Hart, returned at Blackburn but made a costly error.
sports@thenational.ae
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
The%20specs%3A%202024%20Mercedes%20E200
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%20four-cyl%20turbo%20%2B%20mild%20hybrid%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E204hp%20at%205%2C800rpm%20%2B23hp%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E320Nm%20at%201%2C800rpm%20%2B205Nm%20hybrid%20boost%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E9-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7.3L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2FDecember%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh205%2C000%20(estimate)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
THE TWIN BIO
Their favourite city: Dubai
Their favourite food: Khaleeji
Their favourite past-time : walking on the beach
Their favorite quote: ‘we rise by lifting others’ by Robert Ingersoll
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Veere di Wedding
Dir: Shashanka Ghosh
Starring: Kareena Kapoo-Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania
Verdict: 4 Stars
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
More on Quran memorisation: