DUBAI // Al Wasl have denied reports claiming Diego Maradona had offered to coach the Bahrain national team.
The offer was said to have been made during the Dubai side's visit to the island kingdom for their Gulf Clubs Championship match against Al Riffa.
However, Ahmad Khalifa, the head of the media office at Wasl, said in a statement yesterday: "There was no official statement or comment made by Diego Maradona indicating that he has any interest in coaching the Bahraini national team,"
"As he has stated more than once, Diego Maradona would like to see his contract through with Al Wasl and even more recently he has expressed his interest in staying with Al Wasl for life."
Maradona reiterated his commitment to Wasl in Bahrain as well, saying he had found his "paradise" in Dubai, but one newspaper claimed the Argentine had offered his services to the Bahrain national team.
"Put my name in your options if you are looking for a new coach for the national team," Maradona was quoted as saying by the Al Bilad newspaper.
Maradona, who is in the first year of his two-year contract with Wasl, is also being wooed by the UAE Football Association for the national team post.
According to Al Bilad, Maradona made the statement about coaching Bahrain in a conversation with Sheikh Ali bin Khalifa, the vice president of the Bahrain Football Association.
The newspaper also quoted him as saying: "I think that Bahraini football is generally good. Al Riffa are characterised by excellent passing and have very good elements.
"Through my work with Al Wasl, I can see Gulf football is at a good level but needs more attention."
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Where to donate in the UAE
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
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It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were experimenting with sticky tape and graphite, the material used as lead in pencils.
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By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
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THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
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