Arsenal 2
Ozil 8’, Giroud 15’
Napoli 0
Man of the match Mesut Ozil
LONDON // It is early, of course, far too soon to be making rash claims or hailing this as the best Arsenal team since they reached the Uefa Champions League final in 2006, but the signs are there.
The arrival of Mesut Ozil has sent a jolt through Arsenal, giving them not only a magnificent player but also instilling the self-belief that has been so desperately lacking in recent seasons. At the moment they are playing with a mixture of joy and ruthlessness that can be both intoxicating and devastating.
If they became a little sloppy in the second portion of the first half, it was understandable. Who would have failed to have not got carried away with the excellence of their play in the opening quarter of the game?
There was pace and verve and imagination, and it brought two goals that were each wonderful in their own way. The nature of the opposition only underlined the quality of Arsenal’s play,
Napoli are second in Italy’s Serie A, having dropped just two points this season. Two weeks ago, they comprehensively beat German league leaders Borussia Dortmund. It is true that Miguel Britos and Camilo Zuniga both had shockers, but at least in part, their panic was the result of Arsenal’s play.
The Gunners’ opening goal, scored after eight minutes, was a deceptively simple move that began with a ball down the line from Bacary Sagna. It ended with a first-time finish from Mesut Ozil, his first goal for Arsenal, and it included a deft flick from Olivier Giroud and a cutback to the edge of the box from Aaron Ramsey. Last season, Ramsey struggled when asked to play wide, leading to derision from some fans and the excuse that it was not his natural position from others.
Given how well he has been playing this season, shifting the Wales international out of the centre seemed a risk, but Arsene Wenger, 17 years and a day after being appointed Arsenal manager, suddenly has the golden touch again: the quality of his cross, the awareness required to see the angle and the approach of Ozil, were vindication.
The second goal, which came seven minutes later, was less aesthetically pleasing, but spoke of the impact of another of Arsenal’s summer signings, Mathieu Flamini. A free transfer he may have been, but he has added bite and aggression to the back of midfield, giving Arsenal back some of the snap that always underlay the pretty football a decade ago.
It was the Frenchman who intercepted Britos’s mis-hit clearance, dabbing the ball to Giroud, who nudged it outside to Ozil, ran on to the edge of the six-yard box, and swept in the German’s low cross after he had skipped his way to the by-line.
Again, it was hard not to reflect on the change in a player who never fully convinced last season. The unspoken thought of what Arsenal would do were Giroud to be injured always lurks, but he now looks a versatile and accomplished centre-forward.
Six goals in 10 games this season tell their own story.
If there was a disappointment, it was that the euphoric football of that first 20 minutes could not be sustained. The second half, in fact, almost felt anticlimactic as Arsenal, with the game won, dropped their intensity and Napoli seemed content to accept a relatively honourable defeat.
It took a fine save from Pepe Reina to prevent Laurent Koscielny adding a third, but the game had long been settled by then.
But what will live in the memory is what happened in that first 20 minutes, when Arsenal scaled heights undreamt of at the Emirates Stadium in the last two or three seasons.
They have lost just one of their last 21 games since the beginning of March, and look an extremely serious force again.
sports@thenational.ae
Types of fraud
Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
* Nada El Sawy
When is VAR used?
• Goals
• Penalty decisions
• Direct red-card incidents
• Mistaken identity
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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
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Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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Abdul Jabar Qahraman was meeting supporters in his campaign office in the southern Afghan province of Helmand when a bomb hidden under a sofa exploded on Wednesday.
The blast in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah killed the Afghan election candidate and at least another three people, Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak told reporters. Another three were wounded, while three suspects were detained, he said.
The Taliban – which controls much of Helmand and has vowed to disrupt the October 20 parliamentary elections – claimed responsibility for the attack.
Mr Qahraman was at least the 10th candidate killed so far during the campaign season, and the second from Lashkar Gah this month. Another candidate, Saleh Mohammad Asikzai, was among eight people killed in a suicide attack last week. Most of the slain candidates were murdered in targeted assassinations, including Avtar Singh Khalsa, the first Afghan Sikh to run for the lower house of the parliament.
The same week the Taliban warned candidates to withdraw from the elections. On Wednesday the group issued fresh warnings, calling on educational workers to stop schools from being used as polling centres.
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Torque: 685Nm at 2,000rpm
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Votes
Total votes: 1.8 million
Ashraf Ghani: 923,592 votes
Abdullah Abdullah: 720,841 votes
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
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Sunday's games
All times UAE:
Tottenham Hotspur v Crystal Palace, 4pm
Manchester City v Arsenal, 6.15pm
Everton v Watford, 8.30pm
Chelsea v Manchester United, 8.30pm
The rules of the road keeping cyclists safe
Cyclists must wear a helmet, arm and knee pads
Have a white front-light and a back red-light on their bike
They must place a number plate with reflective light to the back of the bike to alert road-users
Avoid carrying weights that could cause the bike to lose balance
They must cycle on designated lanes and areas and ride safe on pavements to avoid bumping into pedestrians
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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JERSEY INFO
Red Jersey
General Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the leader of the General Classification by time.
Green Jersey
Points Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the fastest sprinter, who has obtained the best positions in each stage and intermediate sprints.
White Jersey
Young Rider Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the best young rider born after January 1, 1995 in the overall classification by time (U25).
Black Jersey
Intermediate Sprint Classification: worn daily, starting from Stage 2, by the rider who has gained the most Intermediate Sprint Points.
