First in a three-part series.
How to assemble a list of the country’s 25 greatest footballers?
From personal observation, over the past two decades.
To evaluate those who played before the middle 1990s, a close study of archived material, including video, was a requirement. Even more important were conversations with friends, relatives and former club officials about the skill levels of players from the early years of the country.
But the main determinant in choosing these 25 was how “influential” each player was to club and country while also taking into account raw talent and individual achievements.
25 Essa Santo Ahmed
The former Al Wahda and current Al Ahli right-back made his first-team debut for Wahda in 2006 at the age of 20 and has represented the national team 12 times. Apart from being one of the most consistent and industrious players over the years in the Arabian Gulf League, Essa Santo has been more influential with his attitude towards the media. He is one of the few Emiratis who always makes himself available for interviews. Over the years, the lack of interview availabilities has been a constant and demoralising journalism challenge in the UAE. That has led to a lack of historical archives.
24 Ismail Al Hammadi
He is 27 but the best may still be ahead of the Al Ahli winger and he could rise on this list. His speed is devastating, his match-winning ability and influence is undoubted; if he understood how good he is and how he could improve, he could be one of Emirati greats. He has 59 caps and seven goals for his country, including the winner at the 2013 Gulf Cup of Nations final against Iraq.
23 Ali Kasheif
No side sustains a title pursuit with a weak goalkeeper and he was the best in the country when Al Jazira won their first league title, in 2011, as well as the President’s Cup in 2011 and 2012. He also was the national team’s first-choice keeper at the London 2012 Olympics as well as the championship side at the 2013 Gulf Cup. Kasheif, 28, is a natural leader who has captained both Jazira and the national side, and his enormous will to win can be seen in tirades at colleagues he believes are not performing to expectations. He has suffered a decline of late, but he could be remembered as one of the nation’s great goalkeepers if he recovers his form.
22 Ali Al Wehaibi
An Al Ain youth product, the slight but speedy winger broke into the senior side in 2001 at the age of 18 and made 195 appearances for the 12-time AGL champions, as well as 46 for the national side. He was one of the first classic wingers in the country, fearsomely competitive, tormenting defenders with his sharp runs towards the byline. He was one of the most important players during Al Ain’s run to the Asian Champions League title in 2003 and to a runners-up medal in 2005. He first made his mark in UAE football at the 2003 Fifa World Youth Championship, when he scored a goal for the UAE in the opening match. With Al Ain, he won six league titles, five President’s Cups and two AGL Super Cups.
21 Amer Abdulrahman
The quiet man of the current national team is sometimes overlooked, but he is to the UAE what Paul Scholes was to Manchester United: calm, composed and an orchestrator from the middle of the park. He is slowly turning into the greatest Emirati player not to win a league title. Some see tragedy in his spending so many years at Baniyas, others see his loyalty as a desire to one day inspire his boyhood team to glory. He joined Baniyas’s youth set-up when he was nine and broke into their first team in 2009. Since then, he has made 89 appearances for the club and represented the national team 44 times. He is part of the current Emirati “golden generation” and made history with the Under 23 team, who qualified for the 2012 Olympics in London. In 2014, he had a two-week trial at English club Blackburn Rovers.
20 Salem Bushnain
He was picked in the country’s first international team, in 1972, and was one of the first all-round creative Emirati midfielders. He became a regular in the national team and an integral part of the Al Nasr team that won back-to-back UAE league championships, in 1978 and 1979, the first two in the club’s history. He played in the 1972, 1974, 1976 and 1979 Gulf Cups. Not much of him is documented but he was described by teammates and the media as one of the first superstars of Emirati football. (Not pictured)
19 Fahad Khamees Mubarak
He played as a striker for the national team and Al Wasl. His goals made Al Wasl an unstoppable force in UAE football in the late 1980s. He was part of the first “golden generation” of Emirati football, who took the UAE to their only World Cup, in 1990, and proudly captained the team against Colombia and Yugoslavia. He represented the national team 82 times and scored 37 goals. He made 230 appearances for Al Wasl, notching 166 goals in a glittering career spanning 16 years.
18 Salem Jawhar
Perhaps the finest holding midfielder in the history of UAE football. He rarely ventured forward, but when he did he often had a goal in him. His sense of certainty was infectious, turning a nervy, fearful Al Ain side into serial winners. He was masterful with his positioning, his ability to sense danger in front of the defence and his ability to keep the ball. He was the undisputed leader of the Al Ain sides who won five league championships in seven years, from 1998 through 2004, and was captain of the side who won the Asian Champions League title in 2003.
17 Khalid Ismail
His masterful and authoritative displays for Al Nasr gave the domestic league a much-needed layer of gloss in an era of semi-pro competitions. Khalid Ismail will forever be known as the man who scored the country’s first goal in a World Cup finals, against eventual champions West Germany at Italy 1990. Khalid played as a left-sided midfielder for the national team and as a striker for Nasr. He played in four Asian Championships and five Gulf Cups with the national team. Like most UAE footballers of his era, he held a full-time job: he was a fireman by day and a footballer by night. He is now the deputy chief fire officer at Dubai airports.
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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
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Day 1, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Sadeera Samarawickrama set pulses racing with his strokeplay on his introduction to Test cricket. It reached a feverish peak when he stepped down the wicket and launched Yasir Shah, who many regard as the world’s leading spinner, back over his head for six. No matter that he was out soon after: it felt as though the future had arrived.
Stat of the day - 5 The last time Sri Lanka played a Test in Dubai – they won here in 2013 – they had four players in their XI who were known as wicketkeepers. This time they have gone one better. Each of Dinesh Chandimal, Kaushal Silva, Samarawickrama, Kusal Mendis, and Niroshan Dickwella – the nominated gloveman here – can keep wicket.
The verdict Sri Lanka want to make history by becoming the first team to beat Pakistan in a full Test series in the UAE. They could not have made a better start, first by winning the toss, then by scoring freely on an easy-paced pitch. The fact Yasir Shah found some turn on Day 1, too, will have interested their own spin bowlers.
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 National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
No%20Windmills%20in%20Basra
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Diaa%20Jubaili%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPages%3A%20180%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPublisher%3A%20Deep%20Vellum%20Publishing%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Five films to watch
Castle in the Sky (1986)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Only Yesterday (1991)
Pom Poki (1994)
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013)
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Scoreline
Liverpool 4
Oxlade-Chamberlain 9', Firmino 59', Mane 61', Salah 68'
Manchester City 3
Sane 40', Bernardo Silva 84', Gundogan 90' 1
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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)
UAE%20SQUAD
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Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
THE BIO
Family: I have three siblings, one older brother (age 25) and two younger sisters, 20 and 13
Favourite book: Asking for my favourite book has to be one of the hardest questions. However a current favourite would be Sidewalk by Mitchell Duneier
Favourite place to travel to: Any walkable city. I also love nature and wildlife
What do you love eating or cooking: I’m constantly in the kitchen. Ever since I changed the way I eat I enjoy choosing and creating what goes into my body. However, nothing can top home cooked food from my parents.
Favorite place to go in the UAE: A quiet beach.
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
