The next trophy which is guaranteed to be presented at Real Madrid's magnificent home will be the Champions League next May as the climax to Europe's premier club competition will be staged at the Bernabeu.
The Real players would have known that as they climbed the steps of the main stand on Monday night to be presented with the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy.
Manuel Pellegrini's charges beat Norwegian side Rosenborg 4-0 with two first-half goals from Karim Benzema and one from Lassana Diarra. Raul, the captain, made it four in the second period.
Like Barca's Gamper Trophy, the game is the traditional final pre-season match, an opportunity for Real's fans to see their summer signings.
While Real's have been notable they have attracted global headlines, the attention was fixed on players who have already proved themselves in the white shirt.
Defender Michel Salgado was given a rapturous send-off for a decade's service before he joins Blackburn Rovers in the English Premier League.
There was further applause with 15 minutes to play when striker Ruud van Nistelrooy and midfielder Mahamadou Diarra emerged from the bench after long absences. Van Nistelrooy's knee injury was the more severe and has kept him out since November 2008.
"It was emotional for me to return and I'm struggling for words to describe how I feel," stated Van Nistelrooy. "I was deeply moved with the welcome the fans gave me when I warmed up and took the pitch. It was incredible.
"I've worked very hard for months to recover and I went through some complicated moments that I managed to overcome. The worst thing about the injury was that I couldn't run for six months. I had to spend four hours a day in the gym and couldn't step on the pitch. I can thankfully leave all that behind me now."
Much has changed at Real since he last played. Florentino Perez has returned as president, bringing with him a new coach and clutch of world-class players as he attempts to bring past glories back to the Bernabeu.
Van Nistelrooy will have watched with interest as one, Benzema, skilfully converted a brace of goals. Van Nistelrooy's goal-scoring record is a match for any in world football, but at 33, he will not be a starter for the first time in his career. There is speculation Real will listen to offers.
Real are looking sharper with every game and as Cristiano Ronaldo said in near-perfect Spanish after the final whistle: "Little by little, we're getting there."
The same could be said of the Portuguese winger, with coach Pellegrini saying: "Cristiano needs a little more time to adapt to the style of his new team.
Pellegrini added: "The team is ready and every player has the right level of fitness as we go into the season. We look exceptionally strong in attack."
The Chilean is blessed with a squad packed with talent and his starting line-up will be similar to the side that beat Rosenborg when Real open their Primera Liga campaign against Deportivo La Coruna at home on Saturday.
Facing players like Kaka, Ronaldo and Xabi Alonso, Deportivo will do well not to be overawed.
@Email:amitten@thenational.ae
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
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VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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
