Africa waited six-and-a-half hours for its first goal from open play at the Russia World Cup. It waited even longer for its first goal scored from open play by an African footballer. Until M'Baye Niang, born in France, and a former French Under 21 international, registered what turned out the match-winner for Senegal against Poland - who had fallen 1-0 behind to an own goal - it had been a barren tournament for a continent that endures football’s most hard to crack ceiling.
With less than a week gone, Egypt and Morocco are ready to book early flights home and if the circumstances of their losing starts might be deemed unlucky, there were some shared flaws. Egypt lost their opening match to Uruguay with an 89th minute goal; Morocco lost to a stoppage-time goal, to Iran, and to add insult to injury-time heartbreak, it was an own goal. Aziz Bouhaddouz's World Cup story was barely 15 minutes old when it turned tearful. He had come on a late substitute and thundered a header past his own goalkeeper from an Iran free-kick Morocco had not needed to concede.
When Tunisia also lost their opening fixture to a stoppage-time goal, it looked almost if last-minute fatigue was a North Africa contagion. Egypt and both the Maghreb teams were left on no points after the first round of matches because of goals scored after the 89th minute. And all from crosses into the penalty box from dead balls. Giving away goals at set-pieces is hardly an exclusively African flaw at this tournament of fruitful free kicks, corners and penalties but where fine margins are the difference between going him early and clawing a route to the knockout phase, attentiveness is everything.
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Read more on World Cup 2018:
John McAuley: Ronaldo on target and on a mission to single-handedly win the World Cup
Comment: Sadio Mane and the rest of Senegal's modern day stars owe class of 2002 a huge debt
Analysis: Why Ronaldo and the set-piece experts are rocking World Cup 2018
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Nigeria lost their opening fixture, thanks to, yes, an own goal - yes, after a corner had been inadequately repelled - and then a Croatia penalty when, again, a corner had panicked a defender, in this case William Troost-Ekong. With a determined Iceland facing the Super Eagles on Friday and then Argentina in wait in a final group match the South Americans will need a positive outcome from, Group D is not a happy place to be looking upwards from the bottom of.
"We need to be more professional with set-pieces," acknowledged Gernot Rohr, the German manager of Nigeria. "We will get better." Nigeria need to, and in a hurry. Iceland will direct high balls at them, from long throw-ins and free kicks and, having held Argentina to a draw on their debut at a World Cup, the smallest nation represented in Russia will take on Africa's most populous nation without cowering.
Nigeria reached the last 16 at Brazil 2014, so did Algeria. Two out of five in the knockout rounds was a small uptick on 2010, where, with the hosts South Africa increasing the continent’s representation to six teams but not doing anything to raise standards, only Ghana emerged from the group phase. Their tournament now looks like a landmark. Ghana reached the last eight and were denied a place in the semi-final by the notorious Luis Suarez handball on the Uruguay goal-line.
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Read more on World Cup 2018:
In pictures: Mohamed Salah's pain and brief joy as Egypt beaten by Russia
John McAuley: Rampant Russia too strong for Egypt as 2018 World Cup knockout stage beckons
Reacton: Egypt's Hector Cuper concedes future uncertain after probable World Cup exit in Russia
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Cameroon reached the last eight in 1990, and Senegal made the quarter-finals in thrilling fashion in Korea and Japan in 2002. One quarter-finalist per decade is a scant reward for the Africa that has given the game Uefa Champions League winners such as Samuel Eto'o, Didier Drogba and Yaya Toure and for that matter two of the past three PFA Players of the Year in the English Premier League, namely Riyad Mahrez and Mohamed Salah, the latter sadly missed because of injury by Egypt in their opening match at this World Cup, but unable to really affect their next outing, the defeat to Russia.
Morocco, like Egypt, are near the exit. They pushed and pushed at Portugal and played some fine attacking football. But their campaign is still without a goal or a single point. So responsibility is quickly loading onto Senegal, 2-1 winners over Poland thanks to Niang, the dual-national who switched from France to the country of his heritage last year, and to a Polish own goal that, after unlucky deflections suffered by Nigeria and Morocco, might have seemed like a form of karma for a continent. The Senegalese certainly feel they are flag-bearers for all Africa.
“We saw the other African teams lose their first games and it gave us power,” the striker Diafra Sakho told reporters. “I can guarantee the whole of Africa is supporting Senegal.”
UAE squad
Men's draw: Victor Scvortov and Khalifa Al Hosani, (both 73 kilograms), Sergiu Toma and Mihail Marchitan (90kg), Ivan Remarenco (100kg), Ahmed Al Naqbi (60kg), Musabah Al Shamsi and Ahmed Al Hosani (66kg)
Women’s draw: Maitha Al Neyadi (57kg)
Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Stars: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Pom Klementieff, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
MATCH RESULT
Al Jazira 3 Persepolis 2
Jazira: Mabkhout (52'), Romarinho (77'), Al Hammadi (90'+6)
Persepolis: Alipour (42'), Mensha (84')
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.
PROFILE BOX:
Company/date started: 2015
Founder/CEO: Rami Salman, Rishav Jalan, Ayush Chordia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Technology, Sales, Voice, Artificial Intelligence
Size: (employees/revenue) 10/ 100,000 downloads
Stage: 1 ($800,000)
Investors: Eight first-round investors including, Beco Capital, 500 Startups, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Hala Fadel, Odin Financial Services, Dubai Angel Investors, Womena, Arzan VC
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
Mental health support in the UAE
● Estijaba helpline: 8001717
● UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention hotline: 045192519
● UAE Mental health support line: 800 4673 (Hope)
More information at hope.hw.gov.ae
Ant-Man and the Wasp
Director: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas
Three stars
RESULTS
Bantamweight: Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) beat Hamza Bougamza (MAR)
Catchweight 67kg: Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) beat Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) beat Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg: Mosatafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) beat Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
Middleweight: Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) beat Badreddine Diani (MAR)
Catchweight 78KG: Rashed Dawood (UAE) beat Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight: Sallah-Eddine Dekhissi (MAR) beat Abdel Enam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg: Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG) beat Rachid Hazoume (MAR)
Lightweight: Mohammed Yahya (UAE) beat Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg: Souhil Tahiri (ALG) beat Omar Hussein (PAL)
Middleweight: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) beat Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Investment required: $500,000
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder
Power: 101hp
Torque: 135Nm
Transmission: Six-speed auto
Price: From Dh79,900
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Co Chocolat
Started: 2017
Founders: Iman and Luchie Suguitan
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Food
Funding: $1 million-plus
Investors: Fahad bin Juma, self-funding, family and friends
SPECS
Engine: 4-litre V8 twin-turbo
Power: 630hp
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: 8-speed Tiptronic automatic
Price: From Dh599,000
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO
Final: England v South Africa, Saturday, 1pm
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
Buy farm-fresh food
The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.
In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others.
In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food.
In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra.
Sweet Tooth
Creator: Jim Mickle
Starring: Christian Convery, Nonso Anozie, Adeel Akhtar, Stefania LaVie Owen
Rating: 2.5/5
KEY DATES IN AMAZON'S HISTORY
July 5, 1994: Jeff Bezos founds Cadabra Inc, which would later be renamed to Amazon.com, because his lawyer misheard the name as 'cadaver'. In its earliest days, the bookstore operated out of a rented garage in Bellevue, Washington
July 16, 1995: Amazon formally opens as an online bookseller. Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought becomes the first item sold on Amazon
1997: Amazon goes public at $18 a share, which has grown about 1,000 per cent at present. Its highest closing price was $197.85 on June 27, 2024
1998: Amazon acquires IMDb, its first major acquisition. It also starts selling CDs and DVDs
2000: Amazon Marketplace opens, allowing people to sell items on the website
2002: Amazon forms what would become Amazon Web Services, opening the Amazon.com platform to all developers. The cloud unit would follow in 2006
2003: Amazon turns in an annual profit of $75 million, the first time it ended a year in the black
2005: Amazon Prime is introduced, its first-ever subscription service that offered US customers free two-day shipping for $79 a year
2006: Amazon Unbox is unveiled, the company's video service that would later morph into Amazon Instant Video and, ultimately, Amazon Video
2007: Amazon's first hardware product, the Kindle e-reader, is introduced; the Fire TV and Fire Phone would come in 2014. Grocery service Amazon Fresh is also started
2009: Amazon introduces Amazon Basics, its in-house label for a variety of products
2010: The foundations for Amazon Studios were laid. Its first original streaming content debuted in 2013
2011: The Amazon Appstore for Google's Android is launched. It is still unavailable on Apple's iOS
2014: The Amazon Echo is launched, a speaker that acts as a personal digital assistant powered by Alexa
2017: Amazon acquires Whole Foods for $13.7 billion, its biggest acquisition
2018: Amazon's market cap briefly crosses the $1 trillion mark, making it, at the time, only the third company to achieve that milestone