Brad Guzan has hailed Thibaut Courtois as one of the world’s best goalkeepers and insists the Belgium international deserves to be Chelsea’s No 1.
The Aston Villa keeper believes Courtois is Chelsea’s future ahead of Villa’s trip to Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
Courtois has replaced Petr Cech between the posts for Chelsea this season after three years on loan at Atletico Madrid, where he won the Europa League, Uefa Super Cup, Copa del Rey and La Liga.
“He’s someone who I believe is one of the top five goalkeepers in the world,” Guzan told Villa’s official site.
“Thibaut’s resume is outstanding. His accolades for the past few seasons at Atletico speak for itself, with Belgium too.
“He’s only 22 so these things are unbelievable. He’s a top, top keeper and someone Chelsea sees their future with.
“There’s nothing better that having the confidence of the manager and coaching staff.
“You want to be dependable and the guy the lads look to if an opposition player gets through the defence.
“You want them thinking that you’re going to come up with the goods and make a save at the vital time. You want that responsibility.
“You relish that opportunity to be No 1 – be the guy that’s going to hopefully help the team. That’s what it’s all about.”
Guzan was back-up to Brad Friedel and Shay Given before eventually becoming first choice at Villa Park under Paul Lambert, and knows how Courtois would have felt after signing for Chelsea from Genk in 2011.
“It’s a great feeling when you eventually establish yourself,” he said.
“It’s not easy being a goalkeeper because you have strikers trying to take your head off – and it’s different from outfield positions in that only one can play.
“You have to wait for your chance, or even your half-chance. You have to take it because you don’t know when the next one is coming around.
“Thibaut has gone to Spain, not knowing the language and league, and gone on to achieve individual and team accolades.”
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MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
On Women's Day
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Jawan
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Final scores
18 under: Tyrrell Hatton (ENG)
- 14: Jason Scrivener (AUS)
-13: Rory McIlroy (NIR)
-12: Rafa Cabrera Bello (ESP)
-11: David Lipsky (USA), Marc Warren (SCO)
-10: Tommy Fleetwood (ENG), Chris Paisley (ENG), Matt Wallace (ENG), Fabrizio Zanotti (PAR)
UNpaid bills:
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN budget in 2019
USA – $1.055 billion
Brazil – $143 million
Argentina – $52 million
Mexico – $36 million
Iran – $27 million
Israel – $18 million
Venezuela – $17 million
Korea – $10 million
Countries with largest unpaid bill for UN peacekeeping operations in 2019
USA – $2.38 billion
Brazil – $287 million
Spain – $110 million
France – $103 million
Ukraine – $100 million
When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi
Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.
Batti Gul Meter Chalu
Producers: KRTI Productions, T-Series
Director: Sree Narayan Singh
Cast: Shahid Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Divyenndu Sharma, Yami Gautam
Rating: 2/5
Key developments
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- Trump: “We will solve it, we will be successful.”
All times UTC 4
EU Russia
RACE SCHEDULE
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday, September 29
First practice: 7am - 8.30am
Second practice: 11am - 12.30pm
Saturday, September 30
Qualifying: 1pm - 2pm
Sunday, October 1
Race: 11am - 1pm
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Points classification after Stage 4
1. Arnaud Demare (France / FDJ) 124
2. Marcel Kittel (Germany / Quick-Step) 81
3. Michael Matthews (Australia / Sunweb) 66
4. Andre Greipel (Germany / Lotto) 63
5. Alexander Kristoff (Norway / Katusha) 43
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Vijay Shankar, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Siraj and Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper)
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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TECH%20SPECS%3A%20APPLE%20WATCH%20SERIES%208
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Mina Al-Oraibi: Iraq is in a fight to show its people who is really in charge
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The National Editorial: Iran's 'failed model' should be discontinued
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