Few things guarantee humility more than growing up in the shadow of a sibling. A younger sibling, at that.
The Milito boys were known as gifted footballers growing up in Avalleneda, in the far suburbs of Buenos Aires, but it was not Diego who was tipped for greatness, it was his kid brother, Gabi.
Fifteen months younger (and seven centimetres taller), Gabi stood out with his size, athleticism and poise. He looked like a natural. Not like his scrappy older brother, Diego. Which is why, when both had trials at Independiente, the club they supported, it was Gabi, the defender, who was signed. Diego ended up at cross-town rivals Racing. It also explains why Gabi, the younger brother, won his first Argentina cap a full three years before Diego did.
He seemed destined to a career in the shadows. Even when Racing won the Argentine title in 2001, he was a bit player, scoring just two goals and frequently coming off the bench.
The fans loved his dedication and he became something of a cult hero, but that looked to be as far as it was going to go.
Yet he was desperate to move to Europe, just as his brother had done six months earlier and, in January of 2004, he got his wish albeit in the second flight, joining a struggling Genoa side.
It was love at first sight. He scored 12 goals in half a season (joining the club in the relegation zone and propelling them to mid- table) and then followed up with 21 the following year, as Genoa rose to second in the table. But then, disaster struck.
It emerged that club president Enrico Preziosi had paid a large sum of cash to a middle man who then passed it on to players of Venezia, Genoa's opponents on the final day of the campaign.
Venezia were dead last and mathematically relegated and the match was in Genoa. To this day it seems a bizarre game to fix. But the evidence was overwhelming.
Promotion was struck off and the club were relegated to Serie C. Diego, who had just signed a new contract, vowed that he would return when they were back to Serie A.
He moved to Zaragoza where he had the privilege of playing with his brother. Except he was no longer in the shadows. In a few weeks he established himself as one of the most dead-eye strikers in Primera Liga.
More than anything, what set the older brother apart was the uncanny ability to read the play two or three touches ahead.
He seemingly just knew where the ball was going to go, a footballing clairvoyance of sorts which allowed him to become the club's top goalscorer in his first season and the third best goalscorer in all of Europe (behind Ruud van Nistelrooy and Francesco Totti) in his second campaign.
That summer, Gabi moved on, to Barcelona and Diego was given the captaincy, much to the fans' delight. The following year, 2007-08, was a heartbreaker. Zaragoza were relegated, despite his 15 league goals.
The club told him they had to sell him, offers came in from the likes of Seville, Atletico Madrid, Bayern and Juventus.
But Diego also received a call from Genoa and his old president, Preziosi. "We're trying to sell [Marco] Borriello to Milan. If we do, we'll have the funds to buy you back. We understand if you go elsewhere, but, bear in mind, as soon as we get the money in, we'll bid for you too," Preziosi told him.
Diego held out, turning down all offers until deadline day, when the call from Genoa finally came. There really was not much to think about. He wanted to return home. Buoyed by his 24 Serie A goals, Genoa qualified for the Uefa Cup and he established himself as one of the best goalscorers in Italy.
Three years after leading Genoa back to Serie A (only to have it struck off by Preziosi's mis-deeds), he was back there and finally tasting Italy's top flight.
But this is football, not Hollywood. And, by the end of the season, it was clear that Diego was just too good for Genoa. Inter made the club an offer neither he nor Preziosi could refuse and he moved to the San Siro to join forces with Jose Mourinho.
He cried when he said goodbye to the fans, but they understood.
With a World Cup on the horizon, Inter was the place to be.
Now his goals are different: the Champions League crown and then, South Africa (for the World Cup). He is not just competing for himself but, ironically, for Gabi too, who, following an horrific knee injury, has been sidelined for nearly 18 months.
No more shadows for him.
Gabriele Marcotti is an expert in world football and lives in London.
gmarcotti@thenational.ae
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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)
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
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
THE BIO
Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren
Favourite travel destination: Switzerland
Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers
Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum
Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
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
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km
Price: Dh133,900
On sale: now
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
$1,000 award for 1,000 days on madrasa portal
Daily cash awards of $1,000 dollars will sweeten the Madrasa e-learning project by tempting more pupils to an education portal to deepen their understanding of math and sciences.
School children are required to watch an educational video each day and answer a question related to it. They then enter into a raffle draw for the $1,000 prize.
“We are targeting everyone who wants to learn. This will be $1,000 for 1,000 days so there will be a winner every day for 1,000 days,” said Sara Al Nuaimi, project manager of the Madrasa e-learning platform that was launched on Tuesday by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to reach Arab pupils from kindergarten to grade 12 with educational videos.
“The objective of the Madrasa is to become the number one reference for all Arab students in the world. The 5,000 videos we have online is just the beginning, we have big ambitions. Today in the Arab world there are 50 million students. We want to reach everyone who is willing to learn.”
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
The%20specs%3A%20Panamera%20Turbo%20E-Hybrid
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World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
Company%20profile
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