Al Shaab are known as the "Commandos". It is a reputation well earned through years of battle on the field, they have never been short in spirit and seldom lack in a fight.
It is a trait the new coach Luka Berzovic would like to preserve, but he wants a bit more.
Shaab have few medals to show for all their years bravado - just one President's Cup crown in 1993 and not a single league title.
"We have to keep our fighting spirit, but we also need to start playing more football," says the Belgian with a smile.
And that's his primary focus as he leads Shaab into the thick of action in the Pro League, with a first-round clash at defending champions Al Shabab on Saturday.
Berzovic makes no lofty promises of winning leagues and cups, nor does he boast of bringing the local giants to their knees. His pledges are simpler, yet endearing.
Berzovic has coached the Saudi Arabian clubs Al Ittihad and Al Ahli, and Qatar-based Al Sadd.
"For me, it is important that we produce good, appealing football," says Berzovic, a member of the Yugoslavia national team in the 1970s. "I want my side to play a different class of football.
"Results wise, if we finish one place higher, I will be happy."
Shaab finished fifth last season, faltering after being in the hunt for the title.
They lost four of their last five matches, hurtling down the table.
"I know that they started good, but had problems in the second half of the season," says Berzovic.
"They had problems in getting results. If I can change that, I think we will be successful.
"I cannot talk about the championship, first place or something like that, but we have to do better than last season."
Shaab have brought in players that should help them improvetheir performances.
They have signed the Sierra Leone captain Mohammed Kallon, who was a member of an Inter Milan attack who boasted the Brazilian forward Ronaldo in his prime.
He has also plied his trade at Monaco and helped the Saudi Arabia side Al Ittihad win the AFC Champions League in 2005, emerging as the tournament's top scorer.
The young Moroccan Merouane Zemmama has arrived on a loan from the Scottish Premier League club Hibernia, while the Ghanaian striker Godwin Atram completes the triumvirate of foreign players. These three might not be in the same league as Jorge Luis Valdivia of Al Ain or Al Jazira's Rafael Sobis, but Berzovic believes they are the right men for his side.
"Zemmama is a quality player and he is going to bring us what we need. He is a very creative and crafty player, with a good pass. He is good at free kicks also," he says.
"So I am confident Zemmama, Atram and Kallon will bring the quality we need in the side."
Shaab lost one of their most influential Emirati players, Saif Mohammed, during the summer.
Al Ain came in with a Dh10million offer and Shaab just could not turn it down.
"I saw a bit of him on DVD," says Berzovic.
"He is playing for the national team and left for one of the biggest club in the country, Al Ain.
"But I will not cry for him. I have to work with the players we have."
Berzovic is happy with the squad at his disposal and the hard work they have put in. Due to the holy month of Ramadan, the former Bahrain national team coach has not been able to go full steam in training - but he warns it will get tougher once the season begins.
"I am happy to see the players accepting the hard work," he says.
"It is different to what they did before and it will get harder for them.
"But this is the first professional season and we have to increase our workload as the season begins."
Berzovic has a one-year deal with Shaab and knows well the fickle nature of club administrators in football - but he does not fear being shown the door if he cannot mount a title challenge.
"I know my job and I will be trying to do my best," he says.
"The best guarantees are seriousness and good work - and that is the only promise I can make for Al Shaab this season."
arizvi@thenational.ae
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
UAE rugby in numbers
5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons
700 - Dubai Hurricanes had more than 700 playing members last season between their mini and youth, men's and women's teams
Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams
Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season
Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures
The Kites
Romain Gary
Penguin Modern Classics
German plea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the German parliament that. Russia had erected a new wall across Europe.
"It's not a Berlin Wall -- it is a Wall in central Europe between freedom and bondage and this Wall is growing bigger with every bomb" dropped on Ukraine, Zelenskyy told MPs.
Mr Zelenskyy was applauded by MPs in the Bundestag as he addressed Chancellor Olaf Scholz directly.
"Dear Mr Scholz, tear down this Wall," he said, evoking US President Ronald Reagan's 1987 appeal to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.
A QUIET PLACE
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Joseph Quinn, Djimon Hounsou
Director: Michael Sarnoski
Rating: 4/5
SPEC SHEET: NOTHING PHONE (2a)
Display: 6.7” flexible Amoled, 2412 x 1080, 394ppi, 120Hz, Corning Gorilla Glass 5
Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro, 4nm, octa-core
Memory: 8/12GB
Capacity: 128/256GB
Platform: Android 14, Nothing OS 2.5
Main camera: Dual 50MP main, f/1.88 + 50MP ultra-wide, f/2.2; OIS, EIS, auto-focus, ultra XDR, night mode
Main camera video: 4K @ 30fps, full-HD @ 60fps; slo-mo full-HD at 120fps
Front camera: 32MP wide, f/2.2
Battery: 5000mAh; 50% in 30 mins w/ 45w charger
Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC (Google Pay)
Biometrics: Fingerprint, face unlock
I/O: USB-C
Durability: IP54, limited protection from water/dust
Cards: Dual-nano SIM
Colours: Black, milk, white
In the box: Nothing Phone (2a), USB-C-to-USB-C cable, pre-applied screen protector, SIM tray ejector tool
Price (UAE): Dh1,199 (8GB/128GB) / Dh1,399 (12GB/256GB)
UAE SQUAD
Ali Khaseif, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Khalid Essa, Bandar Al Ahbabi, Salem Rashid, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Mohammed Al Attas, Walid Abbas, Hassan Al Mahrami, Mahmoud Khamis, Alhassan Saleh, Ali Salmeen, Yahia Nader, Abdullah Ramadan, Majed Hassan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Fabio De Lima, Khalil Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Muhammed Jumah, Yahya Al Ghassani, Caio Canedo, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue, Zayed Al Ameri
Company profile
Company: Verity
Date started: May 2021
Founders: Kamal Al-Samarrai, Dina Shoman and Omar Al Sharif
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Size: four team members
Stage: Intially bootstrapped but recently closed its first pre-seed round of $800,000
Investors: Wamda, VentureSouq, Beyond Capital and regional angel investors
Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
CREW
Director: Rajesh A Krishnan
Starring: Tabu, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kriti Sanon
Rating: 3.5/5
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Revibe
Started: 2022
Founders: Hamza Iraqui and Abdessamad Ben Zakour
Based: UAE
Industry: Refurbished electronics
Funds raised so far: $10m
Investors: Flat6Labs, Resonance and various others
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh136,521 + VAT and Dh166,464 + VAT
On sale: now
Confirmed bouts (more to be added)
Cory Sandhagen v Umar Nurmagomedov
Nick Diaz v Vicente Luque
Michael Chiesa v Tony Ferguson
Deiveson Figueiredo v Marlon Vera
Mackenzie Dern v Loopy Godinez
Tickets for the August 3 Fight Night, held in partnership with the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, went on sale earlier this month, through www.etihadarena.ae and www.ticketmaster.ae.