Manchester United fans will show their support for Paul Pogba in song before and during Saturday’s Premier League game against Crystal Palace.
There are strong feelings among fans to get behind their No 6 after the racist abuse he has received this week on social media.
The Red Army group in the Stretford End plan to slowly sing Pogba's name over and over to the tune of Amazing Grace.
United’s most expensive ever signing and top goalscorer last season is one of the few players without a terrace song from fans at Old Trafford.
It is a quirk rather than a personal slight, but it is true that Pogba is yet to become the hero supporters had hoped would help return United to the top of the Premier League table.
Those behind the idea hope that it will spread to other sections of Old Trafford in support of the French international who was subjected to a barrage of racist insults online after seeing his penalty saved during Monday's 1-1 draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Pogba has endured a conflicted relationship with fans and suggestions that he wants to leave have not gone down well, but he remains popular, especially among younger fans.
Shirts with Pogba’s name on have been the best sellers since he moved back to United three years ago, though fans worried that he is leaving have held off putting him on the backs of their shirts this summer and Marcus Rashford's name has overtaken him.
Match going United fans are angered by such online abuse since it doesn’t reflect the reality at games.
Racist incidents at games are rare and United fans are proud of their tolerance in one of England’s leading immigrant cities.
There is anger that online comments from people purporting to be Manchester United fans are casting what is actually a cosmopolitan and multinational fan base as something very different.
The Red Army is a group of die-hard supporters who’ve injected much needed atmosphere into Old Trafford in recent years.
They have worked with the club who have belatedly realised there was a problem with the atmosphere, with vocal fans dispersed around the stadium.
The group’s 2,000 members helped create a noisy atmosphere in the club’s first league game, a 4-0 win against Chelsea. They organise who sits where and on Sunday had 950 prime seats behind the goal to fill.
They will have 900 for the Palace game and hopefully more in subsequent games for their over subscribed section.
“It’s really important to support Paul who we’d love to stay at the club,” said their spokesman. “We also want to let the world know that Manchester United fans won’t tolerate racism. The song can be sung slow, it’s loud and well known.”
The fans stand on the famous terrace which, like Manchester United fans, has had a mixed relationship with Pogba.
After the final game of last season, a home defeat to relegated Cardiff City, one Stretford Ender stood up to vent his frustration towards the under-performing Frenchman.
Yet after the opening day victory against Chelsea, Pogba was the last player to leave the field. He applauded the vast stadium and as he headed towards the Stretford End, handed his shirt to a smiling fan.
He also left the stadium to chants of ‘We want Paul’ from the families and tourists waiting for selfies with the players after the game behind the Stretford End.
On Saturday, those Stretford Enders will rise to demonstrate their support for their midfielder and that Manchester United will not tolerate the racism being pumped out by supposed online fans of the club.
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
Specs
Price, base: Dhs850,000
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 591bhp @ 7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.3L / 100km
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
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Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
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Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
ASSASSIN'S%20CREED%20MIRAGE
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.0-litre%204cyl%20turbo%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E261hp%20at%205%2C500rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E400Nm%20at%201%2C750-4%2C000rpm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E7-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFuel%20consumption%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E10.5L%2F100km%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh129%2C999%20(VX%20Luxury)%3B%20from%20Dh149%2C999%20(VX%20Black%20Gold)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
Notable cricketers and political careers
- India: Kirti Azad, Navjot Sidhu and Gautam Gambhir (rumoured)
- Pakistan: Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi (rumoured)
- Sri Lanka: Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan (rumoured)
- Bangladesh (Mashrafe Mortaza)
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies direct from Dubai to Rio de Janeiro from Dh7,000 return including taxes. Avianca fliles from Rio to Cusco via Lima from $399 (Dhxx) return including taxes.
The trip
From US$1,830 per deluxe cabin, twin share, for the one-night Spirit of the Water itinerary and US$4,630 per deluxe cabin for the Peruvian Highlands itinerary, inclusive of meals, and beverages. Surcharges apply for some excursions.
What is an ETF?
An exchange traded fund is a type of investment fund that can be traded quickly and easily, just like stocks and shares. They come with no upfront costs aside from your brokerage's dealing charges and annual fees, which are far lower than on traditional mutual investment funds. Charges are as low as 0.03 per cent on one of the very cheapest (and most popular), Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, with the maximum around 0.75 per cent.
There is no fund manager deciding which stocks and other assets to invest in, instead they passively track their chosen index, country, region or commodity, regardless of whether it goes up or down.
The first ETF was launched as recently as 1993, but the sector boasted $5.78 billion in assets under management at the end of September as inflows hit record highs, according to the latest figures from ETFGI, a leading independent research and consultancy firm.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five largest providers BlackRock’s iShares, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisers, Deutsche Bank X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
While the best-known track major indices such as MSCI World, the S&P 500 and FTSE 100, you can also invest in specific countries or regions, large, medium or small companies, government bonds, gold, crude oil, cocoa, water, carbon, cattle, corn futures, currency shifts or even a stock market crash.
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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