AC Milan maintain their hold at the top of Serie A


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AC Milan maintained their four-point lead at the top of Serie A thanks to a 2-0 win over Cesena at the San Siro.

Napoli had put the pressure on Milan with a 2-0 win at Bari earlier in the day, and the Rossoneri duly responded, Maximiliano Pellegrino's own goal on the stroke of half-time putting them ahead and Zlatan Ibrahimovic sealing the win in the last minute.

Napoli also struck late in each half in their victory over the basement boys, who finished the game with 10 men following the 67th dismissal of Alessandro Parisi.

Ezequiel Lavezzi struck in the 38th minute before Edinson Cavani put the game beyond Bari's reach with three minutes to go.

Victory moved Napoli two points above Roma into second.

Fourth-placed Lazio lost ground on the leaders as they went down 3-1 at Bologna.

Marco Di Vaio scored twice for Bologna as the Rossoblu came from behind to win.

Sergio Floccari put the Romans in front in the fifth minute only for Gaston Ramirez to bring Bologna level in the 36th minute.

Di Vaio gave the hosts the lead three minutes later before sealing the win with his second at the death.

Lazio also ended the game with 10 men after defender Andre Dias was sent off

Inter Milan slipped nine points off the pace following a 3-1 defeat at Udinese.

Dejan Stankovic put Inter ahead in the 16th minute, but the rest of the game belonged to the home side.

Cristian Zapata levelled five minutes later before Antonio Di Natale put them in front in the 25th minute.

Maurizio Domizzi sealed the win in the 69th minute as Udinese became the first side to take any points off Leonardo's team in 2011.

Fiorentina battled back to claim a 1-1 draw against relegation-threatened Lecce.

David Di Michele put the hosts ahead shortly before the half-hour mark and missed the chance to double the lead from the penalty spot before the interval.

But the Viola had the better of the second period and Alberto Gilardino's header ensured a share of the spoils.

The games between Chievo and Genoa and Sampdoria and Juventus ended goalless.

Timeline

2012-2015

The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East

May 2017

The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts

September 2021

Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act

October 2021

Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence 

December 2024

Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group

May 2025

The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan

July 2025

The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan

August 2025

Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision

October 2025

Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange

November 2025

180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE

What is blockchain?

Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.

The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.

Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.

However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.

Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Two-step truce

The UN-brokered ceasefire deal for Hodeidah will be implemented in two stages, with the first to be completed before the New Year begins, according to the Arab Coalition supporting the Yemeni government.

By midnight on December 31, the Houthi rebels will have to withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Al Saqef, coalition officials told The National. 

The second stage will be the complete withdrawal of all pro-government forces and rebels from Hodeidah city, to be completed by midnight on January 7.

The process is to be overseen by a Redeployment Co-ordination Committee (RCC) comprising UN monitors and representatives of the government and the rebels.

The agreement also calls the deployment of UN-supervised neutral forces in the city and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to ensure distribution of aid across the country.

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Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites

The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.

It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.

“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.

The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

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OPTA'S PREDICTED TABLE

1. Liverpool 101 points

2. Manchester City 80 

3. Leicester 67

4. Chelsea 63

5. Manchester United 61

6. Tottenham 58

7. Wolves 56

8. Arsenal 56

9. Sheffield United 55

10. Everton 50

11. Burnley 49

12. Crystal Palace 49

13. Newcastle 46

14. Southampton 44

15. West Ham 39

16. Brighton 37

17. Watford 36

18. Bournemouth 36

19. Aston Villa 32

20. Norwich City 29

 

 

 

 

 

 

List of officials:

Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.

Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.

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

Gothia Cup 2025

4,872 matches 

1,942 teams

116 pitches

76 nations

26 UAE teams

15 Lebanese teams

2 Kuwaiti teams