Carlo Ancelotti believes Rodrygo has "returned to his best level" after the Brazilian forward continued his fine run of form to help Real Madrid ease past Granada and return to the top of La Liga.
After surprise high-flyers Girona snatched a 2-1 win over Valencia to move temporarily top, Madrid slid back above them on goal difference on a tranquil evening in the capital.
Brahim Diaz opened the scoring midway through the first half and Rodrygo doubled the lead after 57 minutes at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The Brazilian forward has scored seven goals in his last five games across all competitions, appearing at the perfect time to keep Madrid's strong start to the season going despite various absences.
Madrid are missing several key figures through injury, from goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to winger Vinicius Junior. However, Los Blancos had more than enough to sweep past the Andalucians, 19th and battling against relegation.
"(Rodrygo) has returned to his best level, scoring a lot of goals," Madrid manager Ancelotti told reporters.
The Italian also reserved some praise for midfielder Toni Kroos, who set up Diaz's opener with a clever pass.
"He doesn't give balls away, he always chooses the best option, he's a midfielder who wants the ball," added Ancelotti. "He is not afraid and he positions himself very well, it's his biggest virtue, his control too ... when he doesn't play, he's irreplaceable."
Without creating an excess of chances, Madrid quickly took control of the game. After 26 minutes, Kroos' superb pass sent Diaz in on goal and he stayed cool to gently nudge home and put Madrid ahead.
It was the former Manchester City playmaker's second goal in four matches, with Diaz showing he can help the red-hot Rodrygo fill the gap left by Vinicius' injury.
"We played the football that we know, it was a nearly perfect game, we dominated the match and they created very few chances against us," Diaz told Real Madrid TV.
Jude Bellingham, La Liga's top scorer with 11 goals, could have added another just before half-time but scuffed his shot across goal, the ball bobbling wide.
Madrid's second arrived after a neat team move, with Joselu and Diaz combining to tee up Bellingham.
Granada goalkeeper Andre Ferreira denied the midfielder but Rodrygo galloped onto the rebound and smashed home before the hour mark. He has now netted in five consecutive matches.
Girona 'making history'
Earlier, Girona fought back brilliantly to ensure they would not drop further points in the title race after a draw against Athletic Bilbao on Monday.
Trailing to Hugo Duro's 56th-minute strike with under 10 minutes remaining, Girona finally broke down Valencia's walls through veteran striker Cristhian Stuani's brace.
Stuani levelled after 82 minutes and bundled home another with two minutes to go, with both goals set up by Yan Couto crosses as fans at Girona's tiny Montilivi stadium went wild.
After dropping two points in a draw with Athletic Bilbao to start the week, Girona seemed poised to fall to only their second defeat of the season.
"It's good to recognise that we are making history, it can't be something normal that we've taken 12 wins from 15 games," Girona coach Michel told reporters.
"I only ask that in the bad moments we are united, I keep thinking that – Madrid, Barca, Atleti, is not our league – we will not keep up this rhythm, and we should all be sure about that."
MATCH INFO
Alaves 1 (Perez 65' pen)
Real Madrid 2 (Ramos 52', Carvajal 69')
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How tumultuous protests grew
- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
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The Al Barzakh Festival takes place on Wednesday and Thursday at 7.30pm in the Red Theatre, NYUAD, Saadiyat Island. Tickets cost Dh105 for adults from platinumlist.net
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
MATCH DETAILS
Manchester United 3
Greenwood (21), Martial (33), Rashford (49)
Partizan Belgrade 0
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Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
'Texas Chainsaw Massacre'
Rating: 1 out of 4
Running time: 81 minutes
Director: David Blue Garcia
Starring: Sarah Yarkin, Elsie Fisher, Mark Burnham
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.
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Company%C2%A0profile
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