■ Real Madrid v Barcelona, 10.45pm UAE time on Sunday, BeIN Sports
Andres Iniesta’s most recent match at the Bernabeu left him with a memory he will savour forever.
“It’s a rare thing when you’re leaving the pitch at an away stadium and the opposition fans are applauding you,” Iniesta said earlier this season.
Then he smiled. “It happened to me last time at Real Madrid.” Yes, at Real Madrid. That’s a rarity indeed for a career barcelonista.
That day, Iniesta had provided an exhibition of ... well, of pure Iniesta: Creative, constructive, darting here and there, with that uncanny sixth sense of how to be always in the right position, choosing the best possible pass.
And he did something else that hasn’t always been instinctively Iniesta. He walloped home a goal, struck from distance, with startling power.
It was Barcelona’s third of the game. By the time he was withdrawn by manager Luis Enrique to a standing ovation from many of the fans wearing white jerseys and Madrid scarves, Barcelona had scored their fourth. Madrid had been overwhelmed.
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Read more
■ Diego Forlan: Barca have no time to mourn with El Clasico up next
■ 'I am at the best team in the world': Isco seeks Real Madrid stay
■ Tony Adams: Left-field choice tasked with setting Granada straight
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That was only last season, although, viewed through the lens of recent weeks, and the build-up to Sunday’s showdown in Madrid between Spanish football’s Big Two, it can seem like an age ago.
Barcelona were European champions then, a few weeks shy of becoming World Club Champions, and holders of Spain’s major pair of domestic prizes.
The 4-0 away rout of their rivals left Madrid, naturally, in crisis. Rafa Benitez was fired as Madrid manager a few weeks later.
Less than 18 months on, Zinedine Zidane, elevated from the feeder team, Castilla, to succeed Benitez, eyes the prospect of guiding Madrid to their first European Cup, a trophy they hold, and Primera Liga double since 1958.
If Zidane will not say so, for fear of tempting fate, the second half of that pair of titles will look considerably closer if his team can increase a lead at the top of the table that currently stands at three points, with a game in hand, over second-placed Barca.
As Barcelona captain, Iniesta is obliged on Sunday to lift a mood of creeping gloom. He approaches the 35th clasico of his career having known worse circumstances in the see-sawing relationship between Barca and Madrid, but the sense of drift around his club is pronounced.
His own future, and the renewal of a contract that runs out next year, has been the subject of speculation in the last few days, although it is, as Enrique insisted last week, “ridiculous to think anybody could replace Iniesta”.
Talks about his next contract have merely be been parked until the end of the campaign, Iniesta, who turns 33 next month, says to reassure anxious fans.
That campaign will finish earlier than Iniesta or his colleagues had hoped. Barcelona will not be in June’s Uefa Champions League final in Cardiff, following elimination by Juventus in midweek, a 3-0 aggregate defeat through which the Primera Liga’s highest-scoring team looked unusually blunt in front of goal.
Barca’s strike-force should be their forte, and the club’s executives were on Friday pursuing various avenues of appeal to try to take maximum firepower to Madrid, arguing for an unlikely 11th hour reduction in the three-match suspension of Neymar that would make the Brazilian striker available for the fixture.
What Enrique knows for certain is this clasico will be his last as Barcelona manager. He announced in February he would depart at the end of his third season in charge, and if a rousing comeback, from 4-0 down in the club’s last-16 Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain suggested he might say goodbye in a blaze of glory, those hopes have steadily declined.
Barcelona do have a Copa del Rey final, where they will be favourites against Alaves, ahead of them, but feel they must take three points from the Spanish capital on Sunday to maintain the defence of their league title.
Iniesta was pleased that, as Barca were defied by Juventus at Camp Nou on Wednesday night, their supporters roared them on throughout a goalless second leg. “They were our 12th man,” remarked the captain.
The fans’ appreciation of a Barcelona that has supplied an unprecedented stack of silverware and of joy in the last decade, may not have been as startling as the applause Iniesta heard in Madrid 17 months ago, but it was still gratifying.
Player of the week - Gelson Martins (Sporting Lisbon)
There may be no finer nursery for great wingers than Sporting Lisbon, where two of this century’s Ballon D’Or winners, Luis Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo learned their craft and the Euro 2016 winners Ricardo Quaresma and Nani both emerged. Gelson Martins may be the next in the illustrious line.
Benfica’s loss
Martins goes into Saturday’s Lisbon derby hoping to give Benfica, the league-leaders, cause to once again regret they were not sharp-eyed enough to keep him on the red side of the city. At the beginning of his teenage years, he was attending practice at Benfica’s youth headquarters. Sporting offered him an alternative, and, at their admired academy, he thrived, rising through the B team to earn his first professional contract three years ago.
Rising price
There have been two further contracts since, the latest signed in February, which runs until 2022 and includes a buyout clause of a whopping €60 million (Dh235.8m), acknowledgement of the growing market interest in a player who turns 22 next month. Martins insists he will not leave Sporting until he has won a title there. That is not on the cards this year, with the club third in the table, behind Benfica and Porto.
Marcelo’s nemesis
Martins’s showings in the group phase of this season’s Uefa Champions League alerted clubs outside Portugal to his big-game temperament. The skills were already well known, and indeed Real Madrid had tried to entice him to their academy three seasons ago. When he came with Sporting to Madrid’s Bernabeu stadium in the Champions League last September, he gave Madrid’s Marcelo, in particular, a severe test in what was a narrow 2-1 Madrid win.
Portfolio of tricks
Martins has a startling burst of speed among his assets, and a medley of manoeuvres to put uncertainty in the minds of his markers. Get too tight on him and he has a well-practised pirouette turn away from a challenge. A firm shot and a willingness to strike for goal from unlikely angles and distances are part of the package.
Island life
Martins was born in Cape Verde, the archipelago of islands once colonised by Portugal off the west coast of Africa. He has described sharpening his skills on stony, hard ground there as a child. At the age of eight, he moved with his parents to Portugal.
In Nani’s footsteps
He used to study the moves of Robinho, the deft dribbler of Brazil and Real Madrid, and among his youthful idols was Nani, once of Manchester United, who shares his Cape Verdean heritage, and the Sporting apprenticeship. They are now fellow Portugal internationals, Martins having won his first cap for the reigning European champions last October.
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F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Profile of Foodics
Founders: Ahmad AlZaini and Mosab AlOthmani
Based: Riyadh
Sector: Software
Employees: 150
Amount raised: $8m through seed and Series A - Series B raise ongoing
Funders: Raed Advanced Investment Co, Al-Riyadh Al Walid Investment Co, 500 Falcons, SWM Investment, AlShoaibah SPV, Faith Capital, Technology Investments Co, Savour Holding, Future Resources, Derayah Custody Co.
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 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
Married Malala
Malala Yousafzai is enjoying married life, her father said.
The 24-year-old married Pakistan cricket executive Asser Malik last year in a small ceremony in the UK.
Ziauddin Yousafzai told The National his daughter was ‘very happy’ with her husband.
LAST-16 FIXTURES
Sunday, January 20
3pm: Jordan v Vietnam at Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
6pm: Thailand v China at Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: Iran v Oman at Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Monday, January 21
3pm: Japan v Saudi Arabia at Sharjah Stadium
6pm: Australia v Uzbekistan at Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
9pm: UAE v Kyrgyzstan at Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tuesday, January 22
5pm: South Korea v Bahrain at Rashid Stadium, Dubai
8pm: Qatar v Iraq at Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPHONE%2014
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Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
3.5/5
Apple%20Mac%20through%20the%20years
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Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Brief scores:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
The biog
Mission to Seafarers is one of the largest port-based welfare operators in the world.
It provided services to around 200 ports across 50 countries.
They also provide port chaplains to help them deliver professional welfare services.
BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
The Florida Project
Director: Sean Baker
Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe
Four stars
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
The biog
Born November 11, 1948
Education: BA, English Language and Literature, Cairo University
Family: Four brothers, seven sisters, two daughters, 42 and 39, two sons, 43 and 35, and 15 grandchildren
Hobbies: Reading and traveling
CHINESE GRAND PRIX STARTING GRID
1st row
Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
2nd row
Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-GP)
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
3rd row
Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull Racing)
4th row
Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
Sergio Perez (Force India)
5th row
Carlos Sainz Jr (Renault)
Romain Grosjean (Haas)
6th row
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Esteban Ocon (Force India)
7th row
Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren)
8th row
Brendon Hartley (Toro Rosso)
Sergey Sirotkin (Williams)
9th row
Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso)
Lance Stroll (Williams)
10th row
Charles Leclerc (Sauber)
arcus Ericsson (Sauber)
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
