Head-to-Head matchups to watch:
Cristiano Ronaldo v Lionel Messi
Ronaldo, 29, and Messi, 26, are two of the most lethal goalscorers in football history. Messi’s season has been disrupted by a two-month injury lay-off but he has still managed 31 goals in 31 appearances in the three main competitions this term and is now Barca’s all-time top scorer.
Portugal captain Ronaldo, who has succeeded Messi as World Player of the Year after four consecutive awards for the Argentina forward, has 41 goals in 37 games, including 13 in the Champions League.
Both players have the freedom to roam and are often most dangerous driving down the centre. Their styles are very different.
Messi plays with schoolboy enthusiasm, making darting runs and exchanging quick passes with teammates. Ronaldo is more of a showman, making muscular charges down the pitch, and his powerful, swerving freekicks are a threat from any range.
Gareth Bale v Neymar
Real and Barca’s marquee signings of the close season have had indifferent and injury-hit starts to their stints in Spain.
Bale, 24, who became the world’s most expensive player when he joined from Tottenham Hotspur, is starting to settle into his role on the right wing and has netted 14 times in 24 appearances overall.
The Wales winger has also made 14 goal assists and appears to be developing a fine understanding with fellow forwards Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
Neymar, 22, has blown hot and cold since joining from Santos and although the Brazilian scored the opening goal in Barca’s 2-1 ‘Clasico’ win at the Camp Nou in October he has only netted once since the turn of the year and 11 in 30 appearances overall.
Xabi Alonso v Xavi
The Spain midfielders, who operate in slightly different roles, are considered irreplaceable. Playmaker Xavi, 34, is the heart of Barca and Spain’s possession-based football and covers a huge amount of ground in a match, linking up play and creating chances.
He has been used more sparingly this season as he approaches the end of an illustrious career.
Alonso, 32, plays in a deeper, more defensive role, typically alongside Luka Modric, but his passes, especially balls from deep in his own half to launch counter-attacks, are a major feature of his side’s play.
Real looked lost without him when he missed the start of the season through injury.
Sergio Ramos v Gerard Pique
Centre backs Ramos, 28, and Pique, 27, will be at the heart of the Spain defence as they seek a second straight World Cup triumph at the finals in Brazil starting in June.
Athletic, committed and a tough tackler, Ramos has transformed himself into one of the world’s top central defenders since switching over from right back and is a real threat at attacking corners but sometimes throws himself too hastily into a challenge.
Five classic El Clasico meetings:
Real Madrid 5 Barcelona 0 (La Liga, January 8, 1995)
Just a year after guiding Barca to a 5-0 win over Real, Danish midfielder Michael Laudrup sealed his controversial switch to Madrid by sealing revenge for his new side by the same scoreline thanks to an Ivan Zamorano hat-trick and further goals from future Barca favourite Luis Enrique and Jose Emilio Amavisca.
Barcelona 3 Real Madrid 3 (La Liga, March 10, 2007)
Lionel Messi announced his arrival on the Clasico stage by scoring a hat-trick as 10-man Barca came from behind three times to snatch a dramatic draw.
The Argentine’s brilliance couldn’t spark a revival in the title race, however, as Madrid went onto win the league, finishing 18 points ahead of third-placed Barca.
Real Madrid 2 Barcelona 6 (La Liga, May 2, 2009)
Pep Guardiola’s first game in charge of Barcelona at the Santiago Bernabeu was also billed as a title decider as Madrid came into the game just four points behind Barca’s eventual treble winners and on a run of 17 wins and a draw in 18 league games.
They even scored first through Gonzalo Higuain, but Barca responded emphatically as goals from Catalan born centre-backs Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique added to doubles from Thierry Henry and Messi.
Barcelona 5 Real Madrid 0 (La Liga, November 29, 2010)
Barca’s best performance of the Guardiola era destroyed Jose Mourinho’s Madrid to move top of the table and they never ceded that advantage on their way to a third consecutive title.
Messi was once again the driving force, although he didn’t get on the scoresheet, as he provided two glorious assists for David Villa after Xavi and Pedro Rodriguez had put Barca in control before Jeffran Suarez rounded off a famous night for the Blaugrana.
Barcelona 1 Real Madrid 2 (La Liga, April 21, 2012)
Mourinho was to finally have his revenge on Guardiola 17 months later as Real all but sealed their 32nd title by inflicting Barca’s first defeat at the Camp Nou in 55 games.
Fittingly, it was Cristiano Ronaldo who cooly slotted home the winner after Alexis Sanchez had cancelled out Sami Khedira’s opener.
El Clasico in numbers
1:
The number of 'Clasico' games Real coach Carlo Ancelotti and his Barca counterpart Gerardo Martino have each presided over, a 2-1 win for Barca at the Camp Nou at the end of October.
Italian Ancelotti and Argentine Martino replaced Jose Mourinho and Tito Vilanova respectively at the end of last season.
18:
The number of goals scored by Barca's Argentina forward Lionel Messi in official 'Clasicos'.
The four-time Ballon d'Or winner is the highest scorer among current members of either squad and is joint-top on the all-time list with Real great Alfredo Di Stefano. Cristiano Ronaldo has 12 for Real.
18:
The number of cards the most booked player, former Real and Spain defender Fernando Hierro, collected in official 'Clasicos' (17 yellow and one red).
31:
The number of games in all competitions that Real are unbeaten in since they lost to Barca in October. Of those they have won 26 and drawn five.
44:
The record number of 'Clasico' appearances made by Real's Paco Gento. Among active players, Barca playmaker Xavi has the most with 38, ahead of Real goalkeeper Iker Casillas on 34 and Barca defender Carles Puyol on 32.
90:
Real have beaten Barca 90 times in official matches, with 88 wins for Barca and 48 draws.
226:
The number of official 'Clasicos' played since the pair's first encounter in the last four of the Copa de la Coronacion, the predecessor to the Copa del Rey, on May 13, 1902, which Barca won 3-1.
380:
The number of goals Real have scored in official 'Clasicos', 14 more than Barca.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
MATCH INFO
Mumbai Indians 186-6 (20 ovs)
Kings XI Punjab 183-5 (20 ovs)
Mumbai Indians won by three runs
Non-oil%20trade
%3Cp%3ENon-oil%20trade%20between%20the%20UAE%20and%20Japan%20grew%20by%2034%20per%20cent%20over%20the%20past%20two%20years%2C%20according%20to%20data%20from%20the%20Federal%20Competitiveness%20and%20Statistics%20Centre.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EIn%2010%20years%2C%20it%20has%20reached%20a%20total%20of%20Dh524.4%20billion.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ECars%20topped%20the%20list%20of%20the%20top%20five%20commodities%20re-exported%20to%20Japan%20in%202022%2C%20with%20a%20value%20of%20Dh1.3%20billion.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EJewellery%20and%20ornaments%20amounted%20to%20Dh150%20million%20while%20precious%20metal%20scraps%20amounted%20to%20Dh105%20million.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERaw%20aluminium%20was%20ranked%20first%20among%20the%20top%20five%20commodities%20exported%20to%20Japan.%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ETop%20of%20the%20list%20of%20commodities%20imported%20from%20Japan%20in%202022%20was%20cars%2C%20with%20a%20value%20of%20Dh20.08%20billion.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
EU Russia
The EU imports 90 per cent of the natural gas used to generate electricity, heat homes and supply industry, with Russia supplying almost 40 per cent of EU gas and a quarter of its oil.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Simran
Director Hansal Mehta
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey
Three stars
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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MIDWAY
Produced: Lionsgate Films, Shanghai Ryui Entertainment, Street Light Entertainment
Directed: Roland Emmerich
Cast: Ed Skrein, Woody Harrelson, Dennis Quaid, Aaron Eckhart, Luke Evans, Nick Jonas, Mandy Moore, Darren Criss
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
