Mario Balotelli scored 14 goals in 25 Serie A matches for AC Milan in 2013/14. Antonio Calanni / AP
Mario Balotelli scored 14 goals in 25 Serie A matches for AC Milan in 2013/14. Antonio Calanni / AP

Balotelli to arrive at Liverpool as bold successor to Suarez



Adam Lallana cost more. So did both Dejan Lovren and Lazar Markovic. At £16 million (Dh97.5m), Mario Balotelli will only be Liverpool’s fourth biggest summer signing. It just won’t feel that way.

Balotelli has an almost inimitable ability to fascinate. The cartoonish element to many of his escapades, the extraordinary nature of his talent, the eternal unpredictability that means he is available at such a comparatively slight price: each helps explain Balotelli’s magnetic charm. He is headline maker, charismatic controversialist, the world beater with a self-destructive streak.

And so, inevitably, he will bring comparisons with another: Luis Suarez. Liverpool have signed other strikers, in Rickie Lambert and Divock Origi, and twin flair players, in Lallana and Markovic, already this summer but Balotelli is a second nonconformist, another who can straddle the divide between hero and villain. He will be deemed the Suarez replacement, charged with ensuring the 31-goal Footballer of the Year isn’t missed. He cost a fraction of the £75m fee Barcelona paid for Suarez but his profile and his potential make him the marquee arrival Liverpool have wanted all summer.

They had paid out more than £100m for new signings this summer before even bidding for the Italian, but their spending spree may be judged on the basis of Balotelli. Fail and he will be manager Brendan Rodgers’ folly; succeed and Suarez will not seem such a grievous loss. Certainly, Balotelli shares an ability to do the remarkable that will allow him to excite Anfield. He has the outsized personality that allows supporters to idolise him.

What he does not done is deliver with the regularity that Suarez did last season. Sendings off and strangely anaemic performances have pockmarked his career. So, too, have moments of great virtuosity and matches where he has verged on the unplayable: Manchester City’s 6-1 derby win at Old Trafford in 2011 and Italy’s 2-1 Euro 2012 triumph against Germany, to name but two. Balotelli supplied Sergio Aguero’s injury-time title-winning goal against QPR two years ago. He is often a big-game player, but guarantees of anything other than excellence from the penalty spot are elusive. He has never scored 20 goals in a season, a landmark a forward of his gifts should have reached.

It is why signing him is a risk, even if it is alleviated by the comparatively low price, by Liverpool’s need for another striker and by the requirement to end their long, fruitless search. Daniel Sturridge could be upstaged by his new partner in attack, but he may also be relieved. Balotelli can absorb the attention.

He presents a challenge to Rodgers. His old ally, Jose Mourinho, gave up on Balotelli in his Inter Milan years. Roberto Mancini, long his fellow Italian’s mentor, took him to City but sold him in resigned frustration. Rodgers deserves credit for the fine form Suarez produced during his two years under the Northern Irishman. Getting Balotelli to deliver such a standard would rank as a greater achievement. But if he can, then the price will seem a bargain.

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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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The specs

Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now

The specs: 2019 Haval H6

Price, base: Dh69,900

Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 197hp @ 5,500rpm

Torque: 315Nm @ 2,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km

Company Profile

Founders: Tamara Hachem and Yazid Erman
Based: Dubai
Launched: September 2019
Sector: health technology
Stage: seed
Investors: Oman Technology Fund, angel investor and grants from Sharjah's Sheraa and Ma'an Abu Dhabi

The Birkin bag is made by Hermès. 
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.

Full Party in the Park line-up

2pm – Andreah

3pm – Supernovas

4.30pm – The Boxtones

5.30pm – Lighthouse Family

7pm – Step On DJs

8pm – Richard Ashcroft

9.30pm – Chris Wright

10pm – Fatboy Slim

11pm – Hollaphonic

 

The Facility’s Versatility

Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
 
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
 
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
 
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
 
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
 
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket

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Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

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Scores

Oman 109-3 in 18.4 overs (Aqib Ilyas 45 not out, Aamir Kaleem 27) beat UAE 108-9 in 20 overs (Usman 27, Mustafa 24, Fayyaz 3-16, Bilal 3-23)

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Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm

Transmission: eight-speed auto

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Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

Company Profile 

Founder: Omar Onsi

Launched: 2018

Employees: 35

Financing stage: Seed round ($12 million)

Investors: B&Y, Phoenician Funds, M1 Group, Shorooq Partners

ESSENTIALS

The flights 
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
 

The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.

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