RESULT
Manchester City 5 Swansea City 0
Man City: D Silva (12'), Sterling (16'), De Bruyne (54' ), B Silva (64' minutes), Jesus (88')
It was an exhibition and a microcosm, Manchester City summing up their season with style, substance and statistics. A rout was both a masterclass and a celebration.
It began with the guard of honour formed by the Swansea City players and continued with City demonstrating why they are the new champions.
The figures showed they posted 90 Premier League points for the first time and completed a divisional record of 942 passes. In the first half, five of their players found a team-mate more often than the entire Swansea team. “The performance is the most important thing but the numbers are the numbers,” City manager Pep Guardiola said.
Yet if anything encapsulated their domination of the division this season, it was the chant that came when Federico Fernandez chopped down Raheem Sterling to concede a penalty.
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Read more:
Kyle Walker wants Manchester City to target place in pantheon of great teams
PFA Team of the Year: Premier League champions Manchester City dominate
Kevin De Bruyne revels in 'senior player' role for Man City's title-winning season
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“Give it to Ederson,” chorused the City faithful. At a point in a campaign when previous title races have been on a knife-edge, supporters wanted their goalkeeper to take a spot kick.
Which, actually, might not have been the worst suggestion, and not merely because of Ederson’s excellence with the ball at his feet. His fellow Brazilian Gabriel Jesus stepped up instead and was denied by a combination of Lukasz Fabianski and the post. Bernardo Silva nevertheless swept in the rebound. Jesus got his goal anyway, with a flying header from Yaya Toure’s chipped pass.
It took City to 98 league goals. In all competitions, Bernardo Silva has eight, suggesting he could become their seventh man to hit double figures. It was a sign of City’s potency when David Silva was the sixth to reach 10.
“When a team just depends on one or two players to score goals you cannot achieve what we achieve,” Guardiola said. This illustrates his ethos. City do not have specialist scorers as much as a band of hugely accomplished footballers who are capable of finding the net. Lovely team goals sandwiched a wonderful individual strike from Kevin de Bruyne.
They were elegantly ruthless. Swansea arrived intent on defending, fielding a 5-4-1 formation. They were still behind inside 12 minutes and two adrift after 16. David Silva and Sterling were common denominators.
City began by stroking the ball around and then, with enviable ease, scored from their first meaningful attacks. De Bruyne was the instigator, sliding a pass to Sterling. His cutback was met by David Silva, who first flicked the ball up and then dispatched a low volley.
Then David Silva formed the meat in a sandwich as Fabian Delph played a one-two with him. He delivered a low centre and Sterling, in behind a Swansea defence who thought they were playing offside, had a simple finish.
De Bruyne provided the pick of the goals with a rasping, rising shot that flew past Fabianski. It was another indication of what an extraordinary player the Belgian has become. This was his fifth goal from outside the box the box this season. “When you are analysing 10 months, there is no player better than him,” added Guardiola, arguing De Bruyne is the player of the season.
City could also savour the sight of Benjamin Mendy coming on for his first appearance since suffering a cruciate ligament injury in September. He looked understandably rusty but was greeted with a rousing ovation.
One of the stories of City’s season has been how well they have coped without their sole specialist left-back but the returning Mendy was mobbed in the pitch invasion that followed the final whistle.
Swansea’s defeat was a reprieve for West Bromwich Albion, whose relegation would have been ratified if they had avoided defeat. The damage done to their goal difference could yet be a factor, though manager Carlos Carvalhal denied morale was damaged. After all, they are not alone in being eviscerated by City.
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
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You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha
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Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
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'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey'
Rating: 3/5
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Stars: Samuel L Jackson, Dominique Fishback, Walton Goggins
RESULT
Manchester City 5 Swansea City 0
Man City: D Silva (12'), Sterling (16'), De Bruyne (54' ), B Silva (64' minutes), Jesus (88')
