Uruguay's most famous hand is wrapped around an early-morning mug of mate, a traditional Chilean beverage, when Andre Ooijer bowls into the Amsterdam Arena and catches its owner in mid-interview.
"You're speaking to The Sun, Luis?" says Ooijer, mishearing the introductions and thinking he was speaking to a reporter for the English tabloid. "Good luck!"
Luis Suarez grins at the veteran defender, takes another sip at his bitter brew, and returns to our conversation. This is not a man to easily ruffle. Public excoriations do not come much worse than the global firestorm that followed Uruguay's World Cup quarter-final elimination of Ghana.
The last African nation at the tournament were the neutral's choice; their exit compounding the misfortune of missing a penalty kick with Suarez's emotional celebration of his goal-line handball that prevented a final-minute winner.
Hoisted on the shoulders of teammates after Uruguay bested Ghana in the ensuing penalty shoot-out the striker's sense of humour further irked football's moralists.
"I made the best save of the tournament," said Suarez, tongue firmly in cheek before claiming that his was the most famous handball now, referring to Diego Maradona's goal scored with his hand for Argentina against England at the 1986 World Cup.
A disgrace, came the complaints. Some argued that Uruguay should be thrown out of the tournament, others that the game be replayed. There were petitions for Fifa to change the rules so such a handball brought not just a red card but 'a penalty goal'. No true sportsman, claimed Suarez's opponents, would behave as he did.
Sipping on his specially imported South American brew a half year after the furore, the 23-year-old smiles when asked about the incident.
"I think it was intuition," says Suarez. "If you were in that situation you would do the same. I did not do it with purpose, I did it unconsciously. I wasn't even aware it was a penalty. I did it because it was the only option I had."
Then comes the reasoning of a forward who scores so prodigiously his every game is marked by rat-a-tat blows to ankle and shin. The argument that a lover of the most thrilling part of football would place above railing against handballs.
"I think it is far worse to kick a player when he's going through on the goalkeeper," he says. "To make a foul and hurt our opponent, is worse than my situation.
"The criticism wasn't a surprise. What was a little bad was after the game the only thing people were writing about me was only about the handball. It was not about my attacking, my skill or my goals. It got out of hand. But it wasn't a surprise, because the world is always looking for something to criticise.
"I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't saved that ball. I haven't thought about it. But I thought, and I will think for the rest of my life, that Uruguay were better than Ghana in that game."
Football forgives faster than its observers. Within the technical departments of Europe's top clubs, the focus was not on the end of Suarez's arms but on his feet and brains. He netted three times in six World Cup starts - a strike rate still some margin below the 49 finishes taken from 48 games as Ajax's captain the preceding season.
Able to play left, right or centre; finishing with either foot, with forehead; from close-range or distance; there have been 139 goals in 222 club games for Nacional, Groningen and Ajax. Suarez creates as well as completes. He plays with a pleasing dynamism, revelling in taking opponents on one-to-one, and he's on the watch list of every club with the budget to buy an elite forward.
Earlier this year, then-Ajax coach Martin Jol fielded a call from Daniel Levy offering cash and reserve defender Dorian Dervite for Suarez.
Teasing his former boss, Jol told Tottenham Hotspur's chairman he couldn't afford him and waited for a grander bid. Jol has since been replaced at Ajax but the club's stance on Suarez remains unchanged. For sale. If the price is right.
Tottenham are currently wandering around Europe with a €25 million (Dh122.5m) budget for a striker. Though they offered €22m of it to Villarreal for Guiseppe Rossi last week, Suarez remains an option.
Liverpool are pushing even harder, having gone public with their interest and started talking numbers.
Suarez is ready to move to England. "It is a league that attracts me, a country where the football is really good." Suarez says. "Alongside the Spanish league it is the best in the world. Jol describes Suarez as a footballer "who likes to gamble". Ask Suarez about his style and he tells you that it comes from the improvised pitches of his Uruguayan childhood. "When you are small, and you play on the streets, you learn a lot," he says. "You get kicked, you play bare feet and you have to develop your game to avoid the kicks. You have to be clever."
In this season's Champions League he made Alessandro Nesta a victim of that nous, nutmegging AC Milan's storeyed defender to set up Ajax's opener. "I wasn't aiming for 'a tunnel'. But then Nesta came and the temptation was too great," says Suarez.
Tempted themselves, Liverpool may soon draw similar reward.
sports@thenational.ae
RESULTS
Lightweight (female)
Sara El Bakkali bt Anisha Kadka
Bantamweight
Mohammed Adil Al Debi bt Moaz Abdelgawad
Welterweight
Amir Boureslan bt Mahmoud Zanouny
Featherweight
Mohammed Al Katheeri bt Abrorbek Madaminbekov
Super featherweight
Ibrahem Bilal bt Emad Arafa
Middleweight
Ahmed Abdolaziz bt Imad Essassi
Bantamweight (female)
Ilham Bourakkadi bt Milena Martinou
Welterweight
Mohamed Mardi bt Noureddine El Agouti
Middleweight
Nabil Ouach bt Ymad Atrous
Welterweight
Nouredine Samir bt Marlon Ribeiro
Super welterweight
Brad Stanton bt Mohamed El Boukhari
End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: ten-speed
Power: 420bhp
Torque: 624Nm
Price: Dh325,125
On sale: Now
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.
Courses%20at%20Istituto%20Marangoni%2C%20Dubai
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Generational responses to the pandemic
Devesh Mamtani from Century Financial believes the cash-hoarding tendency of each generation is influenced by what stage of the employment cycle they are in. He offers the following insights:
Baby boomers (those born before 1964): Owing to market uncertainty and the need to survive amid competition, many in this generation are looking for options to hoard more cash and increase their overall savings/investments towards risk-free assets.
Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980): Gen X is currently in its prime working years. With their personal and family finances taking a hit, Generation X is looking at multiple options, including taking out short-term loan facilities with competitive interest rates instead of dipping into their savings account.
Millennials (born between 1981 and 1996): This market situation is giving them a valuable lesson about investing early. Many millennials who had previously not saved or invested are looking to start doing so now.
SANCTIONED
- Kirill Shamalov, Russia's youngest billionaire and previously married to Putin's daughter Katarina
- Petr Fradkov, head of recently sanctioned Promsvyazbank and son of former head of Russian Foreign Intelligence, the FSB.
- Denis Bortnikov, Deputy President of Russia's largest bank VTB. He is the son of Alexander Bortnikov, head of the FSB which was responsible for the poisoning of political activist Alexey Navalny in August 2020 with banned chemical agent novichok.
- Yury Slyusar, director of United Aircraft Corporation, a major aircraft manufacturer for the Russian military.
- Elena Aleksandrovna Georgieva, chair of the board of Novikombank, a state-owned defence conglomerate.
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The low down
Producers: Uniglobe Entertainment & Vision Films
Director: Namrata Singh Gujral
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Nargis Fakhri, Bo Derek, Candy Clark
Rating: 2/5
What is type-1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is a genetic and unavoidable condition, rather than the lifestyle-related type 2 diabetes.
It occurs mostly in people under 40 and a result of the pancreas failing to produce enough insulin to regulate blood sugars.
Too much or too little blood sugar can result in an attack where sufferers lose consciousness in serious cases.
Being overweight or obese increases the chances of developing the more common type 2 diabetes.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
TEAMS
US Team
Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth
Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger
Brooks Koepka, Rickie Fowler
Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed
Matt Kuchar, Kevin Chappell
Charley Hoffman*, Phil Mickelson*
International Team
Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day
Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen
Marc Leishman, Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim
Jhonattan Vegas, Adam Hadwin
Emiliano Grillo*, Anirban Lahiri*
* denotes captain's picks
Emirates exiles
Will Wilson is not the first player to have attained high-class representative honours after first learning to play rugby on the playing fields of UAE.
Jonny Macdonald
Abu Dhabi-born and raised, the current Jebel Ali Dragons assistant coach was selected to play for Scotland at the Hong Kong Sevens in 2011.
Jordan Onojaife
Having started rugby by chance when the Jumeirah College team were short of players, he later won the World Under 20 Championship with England.
Devante Onojaife
Followed older brother Jordan into England age-group rugby, as well as the pro game at Northampton Saints, but recently switched allegiance to Scotland.
THE SPECS
GMC Sierra Denali 1500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Price: Dh232,500
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Match info:
Burnley 0
Manchester United 2
Lukaku (22', 44')
Red card: Marcus Rashford (Man United)
Man of the match: Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)
