The last sight Italian football had of Cristiano Ronaldo in one of its stadiums was of an angry man. He had one foot out of the door of Juventus, eyeing a return to English football. But he packed plenty of drama into his last 40 minutes as Serie A’s superstar.
Juventus were away at Udinese, on the late-August opening day of the current league season. Soon after Udinese had pulled a goal back from 2-0 down, Ronaldo, who had started on the bench because informal talks about his moving were already under way, was brought on. He was fuming when Udinese equalised. Being Ronaldo he reacted with defiance, to pump a header just off target, seeking a late winning goal.
Being Ronaldo, he kept at it, and when, in the fourth minute of stoppage, he leapt to power in a Federico Cheisa cross, all of Italy was reminded that, even in his 20th season as a senior professional CR7 is not ready to be displaced as king of the dramatic comeback. He stripped off his shirt, certain he had won the game. He was livid when VAR, after an agonisingly long deliberation, ruled him offside by the length of an elbow joint.
Five days later he was signing, for a second time in his career, for Manchester United, in whose colours he returns to northern Italy this evening, with another comeback in prospect.
Win in Bergamo against Atalanta and United would go within a point of securing progress out of their Champions League group — a group in which they lost their opening match, to Young Boys of Switzerland, and trailed in their next two, at home to Villarreal and Atalanta. Ronaldo, 36, sealed the turnaround from defeat to victory in both those matches.
The Atalanta manager, Gian Piero Gasperini, shared his thoughts on Ronaldo’s first return to Italy since leaving Juventus and he was generous in his appreciation of the player. “I was actually sorry he moved back to England,” said Gasperini, “because I always like to see the best footballers playing in Italy. He added value to our football. He is simply exceptional, but saying that only repeats what everybody recognises.”
But not everybody has witnessed Ronaldo’s late match-winning knack in quite such concentration as the Atalanta coach.
Rewind to Ronaldo’s first season with Juventus, 2018/19, when ambitious, enterprising Atalanta welcomed the reigning Italian champions to Bergamo in late December with impressive gumption. They led Juve 2-1, with 12 minutes to go. Cue Ronaldo, with a header, and the equaliser.
Manchester United 3 Atalanta 2: player ratings
The next season, a similar story. Atalanta took their upstart energy to the Juventus stadium, led 1-0 at half-time and led 2-1 in the 90th minute. Guess who earned Juventus a point? Ronaldo converted both equalisers from the penalty spot.
At Old Trafford 13 nights ago, déjà vu for Gasperini and Atalanta, Ronaldo heading in the 81st-minute goal that turned a 2-0 half-time deficit into a 3-2 United victory. “We have to make sure we give him very little,” resolved Gasperini.
The blessing for Atalanta is that Merih Demiral, the central defender who scored against United but was then taken off with a muscle problem ahead of the second half turnaround, is fit to marshall Ronaldo. They are still, though, without injured defender Berat Djimsiti and the wing-backs Rafael Toloi and Robin Gosens.
Atalanta, described by United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as “attacking, aggressive, a team with a unispecial style” will likely stick to Gasperini’s preferred back-three system. Whether United also play with wing-backs and a front pairing, Ronaldo as one of them, remains to be seen.
It was successful against Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend, and the system used for the 3-0 win in London corrected some of the flaws apparent in the home game against Atalanta and repeatedly exploited during the 5-0 Old Trafford defeat to Liverpool that followed.
“We have players to play many different systems — back three, back five, wide men, wingers,” said Solskjaer. “We looked at Tottenham, played that system and it worked. But I can't say what we will do against Atalanta.”
“We have a squad to play in many different ways. You can put any system out but it is about the players executing. The way we played was more important than the system and the attitude at Spurs was spot on. If we get consistency we will get results. This is the chance to prove we can go again.”
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
%3Cp%3EHigh%20fever%20(40%C2%B0C%2F104%C2%B0F)%3Cbr%3ESevere%20headache%3Cbr%3EPain%20behind%20the%20eyes%3Cbr%3EMuscle%20and%20joint%20pains%3Cbr%3ENausea%3Cbr%3EVomiting%3Cbr%3ESwollen%20glands%3Cbr%3ERash%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
The years Ramadan fell in May
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
The specs: 2019 Subaru Forester
Price, base: Dh105,900 (Premium); Dh115,900 (Sport)
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 182hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 239Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.1L / 100km (estimated)
Episode list:
Ep1: A recovery like no other- the unevenness of the economic recovery
Ep2: PCR and jobs - the future of work - new trends and challenges
Ep3: The recovery and global trade disruptions - globalisation post-pandemic
Ep4: Inflation- services and goods - debt risks
Ep5: Travel and tourism
Army of the Dead
Director: Zack Snyder
Stars: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera
Three stars
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
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
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
