MILAN // Patrick Vieira marched through the corridors of the Giuseppe Meazza stadium in a state of high dudgeon.
His participation in the Derby d'Italia had amounted to barely three minutes, his role that of safety-belt to protect Inter's 1-0 advantage over Juventus through the final moments of time added on for stoppages at the end of a terrifically intense contest.
Even as Vieira suggested he would be seeking explanations for his absence from Inter's head coach Jose Mourinho, we were listening to them.
Any triumph by a Mourinho team is liable to be presented by the victorious manager as a beautifully planned tactical coup, .
When that victory is against a team managed by Claudio Ranieri, the bragging is to be expected. Mourinho has been ribbing Ranieri via the Italian media frequently since he took over at Inter, often with references to how much more successful Chelsea were under Mourinho than under Ranieri, his predecessor at Stamford Bridge.
Now, face to face for the first time in a competitive match, first against third in Serie A, Mourinho had outfoxed the older man: First, by leaving out Vieira in favour of another veteran, Javier Zanetti, in midfield. The thinking, reasoned Mourinho, was that with the versatile Zanetti there, his flying full-back, Maicon could push forward with more confidence. Maicon did. Juve were under pressure for most of the last hour.
Second, Mourinho had picked Adriano for the first time in weeks, the Brazilian forgiven for another episode of bad time-keeping. The best player, though, had been Ali Sulley Muntari, the Ghanaian for whom Mourinho pressed his treasurers to buy in August. Muntari is acquiring the value Vieira once had in his pomp, tough in the defensive duties of central midfield, a threat when he enters the penalty box. Muntari scored the evening's only goal, a straightforward tap-in as Juventus became stretched at the back.
Inter versus Juve is always highly charged and hardly needed the Mourinho-Ranieri sideshow.
Marco Materazzi thumped Alessandro Del Piero in the back of the head early on, Muntari escaped punishment for an infringement on Marco Marchionni inside the Inter penalty area.
Having patted himself and his players on the back, Mourinho began remaking friends. Adriano had been welcomed back because Mourinho wanted "the beast in him against Juve's aggressive centre-halves." The Portuguese explained: "When I say 'beast' I mean it in the nicest possibly way. I wanted his power. I'm pleased with his contribution."
What he added about Vieira was likewise intended in the nicest possible way. "He's a great footballer, but I especially like his tactical nous against teams who play with a lot of width." He may still wish to give a grumpy Vieira a wide berth for a couple of days.
ihawkey@thenational.ae
Yahya Al Ghassani's bio
Date of birth: April 18, 1998
Playing position: Winger
Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda
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)
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
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Duterte Harry: Fire and Fury in the Philippines
Jonathan Miller, Scribe Publications
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The biog
Name: Younis Al Balooshi
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Doctorate degree in forensic medicine at the University of Bonn
Hobbies: Drawing and reading books about graphic design
Challenge Cup result:
1. UAE 3 faults
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Jigra
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How to wear a kandura
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What are the influencer academy modules?
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How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars
Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.
Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.
After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.
Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.
It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.
