Hugo Lloris described it as peculiar and that felt about right.
On Tuesday, when the France captain lines up against Belgium in Saint Petersburg, for a place in the World Cup final, he will look across at the opposition and see a lot of extremely familiar faces.
Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld and Mousa Dembele, current Tottenham Hotspur teammates. Nacer Chadli, a former colleague.
On the bench, too, where Thierry Henry, France’s leading goalscorer with whom he once shared an international dressing room, now serves as Belgium’s assistant manager. "His heart will be split," offered Loris on Monday.
So peculiar about sums it up. Yet friendships will have to be put on hold. For 90 minutes, 120, or perhaps even more. After all, it is a World Cup semi-final.
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“We do know them very well,” Lloris said. “All their players play in great clubs, most in the Premier League, so we know them more than well. And they know us more than well. There are going to be great players on the pitch, it’s going to be a great match and we have to live it fully.
“And, most importantly, we’re going to have to leave the pitch with no regrets; with the impression we’ve given everything.”
Moderate and measured, Lloris is hardly the tub-thumping type. Still, he spoke in front of the assembled media at Saint Petersburg Stadium of rising to the challenge the following night, of France being better than they were in the last-16 victory against Argentina (4-3) or the quarter-final win against Uruguay (2-0). He understands they need to be, given the their next opponents.
Belgium are packed with talent, fronted by Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne, all Premier League rivals. They have been instated as tournament favourites following their 2-1 triumph against Brazil in Kazan on Friday. Theirs is that so-called "Golden Generation".
So, even though Belgium have yet to win a World Cup – France were champions 20 years ago and runners-up in 2006 – clearly Lloris recognises the current crop's potential.
“The Belgium team is the most complete team in all aspects during this tournament, because the team can defend and attack,” the Spurs goalkeeper said. “They are strong everywhere. They have everything they need to be great team and they are a great team. It is a fantastic generation.
“They are going to arrive tomorrow with a lot of confidence, and we’re going to need an incredibly great French team tomorrow in order to succeed.
We have to be ready to suffer, but we will be ready. Because we’re in an extremely good state of mind and also it’s the semi-finals of a World Cup. So that’s it. That is an opportunity in our career and we have to grab it with both hands.”
It helps that the France team is not half bad, either. Finalists at the 2016 Euros, they have experience but an electrifying young group, as well. Kylian Mbappe, 19, has been one of the stars of the tournament.
Lloris debuted for France when Mbappe was nine. He captained his national team in the final defeat, in extra-time, to Portugal on home soil two years ago. Now, a relatively remodelled French side is aiming for another shot at a major title.
“We have the opportunity to make a mark in the history of French football,” Lloris said. “We are closer to our goal, but we know it’s getting more and more difficult. The opposition tomorrow will be even stronger than our previous opponents.
“There is a good mix: we have experienced players, and especially this new generation, it has incredible potential. We do not know their limits at the moment. We’re trying to use anything that’s positive inside this team so we can go beyond our limits and try to grab what is the most beautiful thing in football. As I said before, it’s going to be an important step for all of our careers.”
Biog
Age: 50
Known as the UAE’s strongest man
Favourite dish: “Everything and sea food”
Hobbies: Drawing, basketball and poetry
Favourite car: Any classic car
Favourite superhero: The Hulk original
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show
- Champions League
- English Premier League
- Spanish Primera Liga
- Italian, French and Scottish leagues
- Wimbledon and other tennis majors
- Formula One
- Rugby Union - Six Nations and European Cups
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
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
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
India cancels school-leaving examinations
In numbers
Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m
Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’ in Dubai is worth... $600m
China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn
The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn
Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn
Results
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStage%203%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Einer%20Rubio%20(COL)%20Movistar%20Team%20-%204h51%E2%80%9924%E2%80%9D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%20Quick-Step%20-%2014%22%3Cbr%3E3.%20Adam%20Yates%20(GBR)%20UAE%20Team%20Emirates%20-%2015%22%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EGeneral%20classifications%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%20Quick-Step%3Cbr%3E2.%20Lucas%20Plapp%20(AUS)%20Ineos%20Grenaders)%20-%207%22%3Cbr%3E3.%20Pello%20Bilbao%20(ESP)%20Bahrain%20Victorious%20-%2011%22%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
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Key facilities
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
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Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
The Limehouse Golem
Director: Juan Carlos Medina
Cast: Olivia Cooke, Bill Nighy, Douglas Booth
Three stars