DUBAI // Al Wasl can spend the two-week Pro League break looking down on the rest of the table from top spot. Wasl, the surprise team of the early stages of the season, claimed their fourth victory of the campaign to take their tally to 12 points, one more than Al Jazira, after a 4-0 demolition of Al Shabab in front of a crowd of 3,270 mostly Wasl fans, at the Maktoum bin Rashid Stadium last night.
Alexander Oliveira, who opened the scoring, also completed the rout with his second goal in added time. Francisco Yeste and Saeed al Kas, who replaced Yeste 15 minutes from time because of an injury to the Spaniard, scored the other goals. Sergio Farias, the Brazilian coach of Wasl, chose to stay on the attack rather than consolidate a 2-0 lead when he brought on al Kas, the former UAE international forward. And it paid off as Shabab caved in during the final minutes.
Wasl were two up at the break and Shabab pressed hard on the resumption, but they were just not good enough to break down the visitors' defence. Shabab enjoyed both possession and territory, yet they failed to put any real pressure on Majed Nasser, the Wasl and national team goalkeeper. Yeste was the stand-out player, particularly in the first half. The Spaniard doubled his team's lead from a 30-yard free-kick after setting up Oliveira to open the scoring in the 14th minute.
Hassan al Sharif cleared a dipping free kick from Yeste into the path of Oliveira, and the Brazilian striker headed the ball hard towards the ground. As he tried to clear the ball off the line, Walid Abbas could only get the faintest of touches with his head.
The result was the ball bouncing briefly out of the goalmouth, before spinning back over the line, to Shabab's horror. Yeste, the 10-year veteran of Spanish football, had also put Maher Jassim through one-on-one with the Shabab goalkeeper, but the Wasl winger fluffed his chance with a weak shot from close range.
Shabab's best chance came two minutes from time when Mohammed Ahmed's powerful strike crashed against the near post, before Wasl's late strikes added gloss to the scoreline. . apassela@thenational.ae
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
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Champions parade (UAE timings)
7pm Gates open
8pm Deansgate stage showing starts
9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral
9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street
10pm City players on stage
11pm event ends
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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.
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
