The happy homecoming will follow the anticlimactic exit. Cristiano Ronaldo will receive a rapturous reception when he returns to Manchester United. Juventus bade him an unsentimental farewell. The Portuguese’s 134th and last game for the bianconeri was a cameo against Udinese in which he was booked and Juventus lost a lead. Manager Massimiliano Allegri confirmed Ronaldo wanted to leave.
Era-defining players can overshadow everything, appearing bigger even than historic outfits, but Allegri underlined the significance of the great Italian institutional club. "Things change, it's a law of life,” he said last week. “Juventus remains, which is the most important thing. Cristiano gave his contribution, he made himself available, now he leaves and life goes on.”
There has been a feeling that Allegri was happy for Ronaldo to go, but if he sounded ambivalent about an all-time great, it is understandable. Ronaldo was a remarkable success in Turin in one respect, a failure in another.
The Portuguese leaves as Serie A’s reigning capocannoniere, becoming the only player to top-score in England, Spain and Italy, the first to win every major trophy in each and alone in registering a century of goals for a club in all three.
Even as Romelu Lukaku was named the division’s player of the year, Ronaldo still outscored him. He can feel an ageless phenomenon: the oldest player to score 30 times in a Serie A season, the man who got more goals in a campaign for Juventus than anyone else.
And yet Juventus declined on Ronaldo’s watch: more in spite of him, but perhaps partly because of him. He joined a club who had won seven consecutive Scudetti and fired them to two more, but they finished fourth last season, 13 points behind Lukaku’s Inter.
He was not responsible for two strange managerial appointments, as they bored of domestic domination under Allegri, and while they became champions again under Maurizio Sarri, he was a mismatch with Juve. Giving the reins to the rookie Andrea Pirlo backfired as Juventus lost their crown.
The sense was that they had grander aims to pursue. Ronaldo was the quintuple Champions League winner hired to rectify Juventus’ record of underachievement in the most prestigious European competition. Yet Allegri’s record of reaching two finals – and losing only to Lionel Messi’s Barcelona and Ronaldo’s Real Madrid – was admirable.
Juventus relapsed with Ronaldo, going out not to the current superpowers but the second-tier clubs at earlier stages: Ajax in the quarter-finals in 2019, Lyon and Porto in the last 16 thereafter.
Ronaldo scored all four of Juventus’ goals against Ajax and Lyon: in one respect, he was blameless, and Lyon manager Rudi Garcia described him as “extra-terrestrial” after an extraordinary long-range strike, but as a star vehicle, Juve felt a lesser team. By this year’s exit, it was Federico Chiesa producing the doomed heroics.
Ronaldo leaves Juventus with 14 Champions League goals, one fewer than he got in his last season at Real alone. He joined as Serie A’s record signing and goes for a fifth of the fee.
Juventus have had to write off 80 per cent of that €100m transfer fee, as well as paying him the biggest salary in their history. They got commercial benefits in return, as well as a bigger place in the global spotlight. Despite those 101 goals, it was still a slight return on a huge investment.
While the balance of power may have shifted when they sold Zinedine Zidane to Real in 2001, taking Ronaldo in the opposite direction did not restore them to their previous pre-eminence. But without their statement signing, maybe Allegri can restore some of the principles that had stood them in good stead.
THE BIO:
Sabri Razouk, 74
Athlete and fitness trainer
Married, father of six
Favourite exercise: Bench press
Must-eat weekly meal: Steak with beans, carrots, broccoli, crust and corn
Power drink: A glass of yoghurt
Role model: Any good man
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Rio de Janeiro from Dh7,000 return including taxes. Avianca fliles from Rio to Cusco via Lima from $399 (Dhxx) return including taxes.
The trip
From US$1,830 per deluxe cabin, twin share, for the one-night Spirit of the Water itinerary and US$4,630 per deluxe cabin for the Peruvian Highlands itinerary, inclusive of meals, and beverages. Surcharges apply for some excursions.
The biog
Hobby: Playing piano and drawing patterns
Best book: Awaken the Giant Within by Tony Robbins
Food of choice: Sushi
Favourite colour: Orange
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
How it works
Booklava works on a subscription model. On signing up you receive a free book as part of a 30-day-trial period, after which you pay US$9.99 (Dh36.70) per month to gain access to a library of books and discounts of up to 30 per cent on selected titles. You can cancel your subscription at any time. For more details go to www.booklava.com
Quick facts on cancer
- Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide, after cardiovascular diseases
- About one in five men and one in six women will develop cancer in their lifetime
- By 2040, global cancer cases are on track to reach 30 million
- 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries
- This rate is expected to increase to 75 per cent by 2030
- At least one third of common cancers are preventable
- Genetic mutations play a role in 5 per cent to 10 per cent of cancers
- Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved annually by implementing the right health
strategies
- The total annual economic cost of cancer is $1.16 trillion
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 (PA) | US$95,000 | (Dirt) 2,000m
7.05pm: Meydan Classic Listed (TB) ) | $175,000) | (Turf) 1,600m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) ) | $135,000 ) | (D) 1,600m
8.15pm: Nad Al Sheba Trophy Group 3 (TB) ) | $300,000) | (T) 2,810m
8.50pm: Curlin Handicap Listed (TB)) | $160,000) | (D) 2,000m
9.25pm: Handicap (TB)) | $175,000) | (T) 1,400m
10pm: Handicap (TB) ) | $135,000 ) | (T) 2,000m
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Sanju
Produced: Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani
Director: Rajkumar Hirani
Cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Vicky Kaushal, Paresh Rawal, Anushka Sharma, Manish’s Koirala, Dia Mirza, Sonam Kapoor, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani
Rating: 3.5 stars
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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
It's Monty Python's Crashing Rocket Circus
To the theme tune of the famous zany British comedy TV show, SpaceX has shown exactly what can go wrong when you try to land a rocket.
The two minute video posted on YouTube is a compilation of crashes and explosion as the company, created by billionaire Elon Musk, refined the technique of reusable space flight.
SpaceX is able to land its rockets on land once they have completed the first stage of their mission, and is able to resuse them multiple times - a first for space flight.
But as the video, How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster, demonstrates, it was a case if you fail, try and try again.
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