When top-level footballers go to the away end of a stadium with their own fans, they usually put their hoods up so that they won’t be recognised by too many people. There are exceptions.
Sheffield United’s Oli McBurnie went in the away section of his former club Swansea City for their recent derby against Cardiff City. Wearing a gold Stone Island jacket hardly made him inconspicuous and he was warned by the Football Association for making ‘hand gestures’ – a warning which seemed harsh on the player.
Four hours before Wednesday’s Manchester derby, defender Marcos Rojo asked the club he was about to leave if he could have a ticket for the away end. He received a ticket for the front row of the second tier – and wore a bright orange jacket. Rojo was quickly spotted and posed for pictures with fans as he saw United win for a second time in six weeks at the Etihad. Then on Thursday, news came in of Estudiantes signing the defender on loan for the rest of the season, the Argentine returning to the club where he started his career and played until 2011.
Rojo likes going in with fans because he’s one himself. His team are Estudiantes of his home city of La Plata in Argentina. His family grew up and still live a mile from what would become their home in the tough Triunfo barrio. A large mural has long been painted on a wall of Rojo in a half and half Estudiantes and Argentina shirt commemorating the Copa Libertadores which Rojo won in 2009, aged only 19.
Many of his friends wander around Triunfo in Manchester United kit too, not because it’s a hotbed of support for the English club but because Rojo purchased so many for locals, just as he paid for the watering system at the local pitch where he started playing.
Rojo and his brother would travel to away games to see Estudiantes, even when Rojo had made the first team and couldn’t play because of injury.
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League Cup: United win, City through
Rojo was set to fly back to Argentina on Thursday evening to join his former club on loan. Juan Sebastian Veron, Rojo’s hero and the current chairman of Estudiantes also played for Manchester United. A sublimely gifted midfielder himself, his own time at Old Trafford promised much after his record transfer in 2001, but underwhelmed.
“If I had one frustration it was that I had highs and lows every season,” said Veron. “I was never at a high level throughout the whole season.”
Rojo’s time in Manchester didn’t turn out how he’d hoped. A £16 million (Dh76m) signing from Sporting Lisbon in 2014 under Louis Van Gaal who liked his pace, versatility and strength, he’s managed just 122 games in five and a half seasons. Injuries, including a ruptured cruciate ligament, and managerial changes have hampered his progress.
He started only three games last season, well down from the 35 (plus six as sub) of a successful 2016-17 season when United won the League Cup and the Europa League. Even then, he missed the Europa League final, a triumph he celebrated on his crutches in Stockholm. In March 2018 he was awarded a vast contract until 2021.
Rojo, 29, has not played for United since the November win against Brighton. Though he started United’s first four Europa League games, he’s played only six per cent minutes of the club’s games, which has done him no favours either.
Rojo wants to get back into the Argentina national team. He provided the greatest moment in a poor 2018 World Cup finals for his country, scoring a screamer against Nigeria in the 86th minute to win the game and keep his country in the competition.
Rojo has played in a World Cup final, played and in the World Club Championship for Estudiantes against Barcelona when he was only 19.
Rojo has endearing characteristics and United fans have sung ‘Argentina!’ in his honour. He was often the most aggressive trainer among his teammates and that aggression could be seen on the field. And the one game he did start this season was in the 1-1 draw against Liverpool where he played well, as he he did for the 90 minutes of the 2-1 cup win at Chelsea.
Rojo leaves European winter for the height of South American summer, the reverse of when he left Estudiantes for Spartak Moscow aged 20 and found the contrast extreme. But he wants regular football and to get back into the Argentina squad to add to his 61 appearances made since his 2011 debut.
He was overlooked for the pre-Christmas friendlies against Brazil and Uruguay and hopes to play in Copa America this July.
He’ll return to the city where he’s loved to play football, delighting his mother who has missed him greatly. And though unlikely, he might even come back to Manchester, this time to play football, not go to the away end.
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
French Touch
Carla Bruni
(Verve)
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
'Panga'
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari
Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta
Rating: 3.5/5
Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures
Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)
Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy
Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy
Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy
Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. Semi-final fixtures
Portugal v Chile, 7pm, today
Germany v Mexico, 7pm, tomorrow
Europe's top EV producers
- Norway (63% of cars registered in 2021)
- Iceland (33%)
- Netherlands (20%)
- Sweden (19%)
- Austria (14%)
- Germany (14%)
- Denmark (13%)
- Switzerland (13%)
- United Kingdom (12%)
- Luxembourg (10%)
Source: VCOe
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Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
You may remember …
Robbie Keane (Atletico de Kolkata) The Irish striker is, along with his former Spurs teammate Dimitar Berbatov, the headline figure in this season’s ISL, having joined defending champions ATK. His grand entrance after arrival from Major League Soccer in the US will be delayed by three games, though, due to a knee injury.
Dimitar Berbatov (Kerala Blasters) Word has it that Rene Meulensteen, the Kerala manager, plans to deploy his Bulgarian star in central midfield. The idea of Berbatov as an all-action, box-to-box midfielder, might jar with Spurs and Manchester United supporters, who more likely recall an always-languid, often-lazy striker.
Wes Brown (Kerala Blasters) Revived his playing career last season to help out at Blackburn Rovers, where he was also a coach. Since then, the 23-cap England centre back, who is now 38, has been reunited with the former Manchester United assistant coach Meulensteen, after signing for Kerala.
Andre Bikey (Jamshedpur) The Cameroonian defender is onto the 17th club of a career has taken him to Spain, Portugal, Russia, the UK, Greece, and now India. He is still only 32, so there is plenty of time to add to that tally, too. Scored goals against Liverpool and Chelsea during his time with Reading in England.
Emiliano Alfaro (Pune City) The Uruguayan striker has played for Liverpool – the Montevideo one, rather than the better-known side in England – and Lazio in Italy. He was prolific for a season at Al Wasl in the Arabian Gulf League in 2012/13. He returned for one season with Fujairah, whom he left to join Pune.
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Health Valley
Founded in 2002 and set up as a foundation in 2006, Health Valley has been an innovation in healthcare for more than 10 years in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
It serves as a place where companies, businesses, universities, healthcare providers and government agencies can collaborate, offering a platform where they can connect and work together on healthcare innovation.
Its partners work on technological innovation, new forms of diagnostics and other methods to make a difference in healthcare.
Its agency consists of eight people, four innovation managers and office managers, two communication advisers and one director. It gives innovation support to businesses and other parties in its network like a broker, connecting people with the right organisation to help them further
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
