Sultan Adil breathed life into the UAE’s flagging automatic World Cup qualification hopes with a dramatic stoppage time winner against North Korea in Saudi Arabia.
The substitute, who is only just back after a long-term spell out with injury, headed home from a Harib Abdalla cross to send the away side into delirium. It set the seal on a tense 2-1 win that keeps the national team in the hunt for a top two finish in the group.
It moves them to within four points of second-placed Uzbekistan in the pool, with two matches left to play, both in June.
The UAE host Uzbekistan in the penultimate match. They need to win that, then beat Kyrgyzstan in their final match, then hope the Uzbeks drop points against Qatar in their last game.
It was nominally a home match for the Koreans but it did not feel like it. On neutral territory in Riyadh, the atmosphere was eerie rather than partisan.
There were more security personnel than spectators inside the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium. That said, there was a voluble contingent of UAE supporters who had made the trip.
As they sang and chanted, a small group of western spectators gravitated towards them and swayed along to the songs.
One of them was wearing a Brazil shirt, so it made sense they were backing the UAE. There were six players in the UAE starting XI of Brazilian origin, including all four on the forward line. Even though they have only just started playing together at this level, they were in sync from the start.
The last time these sides met, near the start of this pool stage, the UAE were shocked by the speed and energy of the North Koreans. They were lucky to gain a 1-1 draw in Al Ain.
They were forewarned this time and it showed in the rapid start they made.
Luanzinho was handed a debut, five days after missing out on the loss in Iran.
The Sharjah forward replaced Yahya Al Ghassani on the left side of the attack. Jonatas Santos, who had made his debut off the bench against Iran, started on the right in place of Harib Abdalla – who was switched instead to left back.
Caio Lucas, who also made his debut in Iran last week, was again the point of the attack.
It was the longest serving of the naturalised Brazilians who made the most tangible impact in the UAE’s bright start. Fabio Lima stole in to score the opener in the fifth minute.
Al Wasl's No 10 had been curiously absent from the starting line up in the UAE’s 2-0 loss in Tehran. After all, he had scored four goals in the thrashing of Qatar the last time they had played a qualifier.
Maybe Paulo Bento, the UAE coach, was preserving him for this challenge instead. De Lima was prominent in a far more attacking display than they managed in the cagey, turgid effort against Iran.
All the positivity dissipated – and the travelling fans were silenced – on the brink of half time, when the North Koreans levelled. Kim Yu-song headed the goal as the national team failed to deal with a corner.
Adil, a player whose absence through injury from the first six games prompted great angst for coach Bento, was introduced at half-time in place of Santos. It gave the UAE a greater physical presence up front.
They had the ball in the goal shortly after the interval, but Luanzinho’s tap in was ruled out for offside.
The UAE dominated possession for almost the entirety of the second phase, but all it earned them mostly was frustration. The Koreans were doughty in defence, and provided a threat on the counter-attack, too.
A shot from distance by Abdullah Ramadan, and an overhead kick from the ensuing save by Lucas Pimenta, were the only times the side in white threatened a second goal.
It felt as though the chance was gone, only for Adil to launch himself heroically at Abdalla's cross in the dying moments.
MATCH INFO
Southampton 0
Manchester City 1 (Sterling 16')
Man of the match: Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS
Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.
Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.
Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.
A Dog's Journey
Directed by: Gail Mancuso
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad, Marg Helgenberger, Betty Gilpin, Kathryn Prescott
3 out of 5 stars
Start-up hopes to end Japan's love affair with cash
Across most of Asia, people pay for taxi rides, restaurant meals and merchandise with smartphone-readable barcodes — except in Japan, where cash still rules. Now, as the country’s biggest web companies race to dominate the payments market, one Tokyo-based startup says it has a fighting chance to win with its QR app.
Origami had a head start when it introduced a QR-code payment service in late 2015 and has since signed up fast-food chain KFC, Tokyo’s largest cab company Nihon Kotsu and convenience store operator Lawson. The company raised $66 million in September to expand nationwide and plans to more than double its staff of about 100 employees, says founder Yoshiki Yasui.
Origami is betting that stores, which until now relied on direct mail and email newsletters, will pay for the ability to reach customers on their smartphones. For example, a hair salon using Origami’s payment app would be able to send a message to past customers with a coupon for their next haircut.
Quick Response codes, the dotted squares that can be read by smartphone cameras, were invented in the 1990s by a unit of Toyota Motor to track automotive parts. But when the Japanese pioneered digital payments almost two decades ago with contactless cards for train fares, they chose the so-called near-field communications technology. The high cost of rolling out NFC payments, convenient ATMs and a culture where lost wallets are often returned have all been cited as reasons why cash remains king in the archipelago. In China, however, QR codes dominate.
Cashless payments, which includes credit cards, accounted for just 20 per cent of total consumer spending in Japan during 2016, compared with 60 per cent in China and 89 per cent in South Korea, according to a report by the Bank of Japan.
Ultra processed foods
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20Tabby%3Cbr%3EFounded%3A%20August%202019%3B%20platform%20went%20live%20in%20February%202020%3Cbr%3EFounder%2FCEO%3A%20Hosam%20Arab%2C%20co-founder%3A%20Daniil%20Barkalov%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20Payments%3Cbr%3ESize%3A%2040-50%20employees%3Cbr%3EStage%3A%20Series%20A%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Arbor%20Ventures%2C%20Mubadala%20Capital%2C%20Wamda%20Capital%2C%20STV%2C%20Raed%20Ventures%2C%20Global%20Founders%20Capital%2C%20JIMCO%2C%20Global%20Ventures%2C%20Venture%20Souq%2C%20Outliers%20VC%2C%20MSA%20Capital%2C%20HOF%20and%20AB%20Accelerator.%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
FIXTURES
Saturday
5.30pm: Shabab Al Ahli v Al Wahda
5.30pm: Khorfakkan v Baniyas
8.15pm: Hatta v Ajman
8.15pm: Sharjah v Al Ain
Sunday
5.30pm: Kalba v Al Jazira
5.30pm: Fujairah v Al Dhafra
8.15pm: Al Nasr v Al Wasl
Company Profile
Founder: Omar Onsi
Launched: 2018
Employees: 35
Financing stage: Seed round ($12 million)
Investors: B&Y, Phoenician Funds, M1 Group, Shorooq Partners
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
