Rodri has challenged Manchester City to prove they are the best side in Europe and show the big-game mentality to eliminate the 13-time Champions League winners Real Madrid.
City go into Friday's second leg with a 2-1 advantage they earned at the Bernabeu in February but the former Atletico Madrid midfielder has warned that Real can come back from much greater deficit, while manager Pep Guardiola is worried by his side’s habit of conceding goals in quick succession in their previous European exits.
Real have won three of the last four Champions Leagues and reclaimed the Spanish title last month but Rodri believes City, who will be without the injured Sergio Aguero, have the finer group of players.
But he admits actions speak louder than words and called upon his team-mates to justify his confidence in them as they face a team with the personality of serial champions.
Rodri said: “We need to show we can win this Champions League and not just this match. We need to show we are better than anyone and the way we know this team is the only way we can get success.
"If we pass this round, beating this kind of team is a big confidence for us.
“I think we have a better squad and if we do things well, things will be good for us. That's a general opinion of mine but words are worthless if you can't demonstrate that and prove it.
“I will say we are a side full of goals with talented players in every area of the field but it’s useless if we don’t show it on the pitch.
"We have to match them with experience and mentality in these big games. They have huge personality. They are the biggest team in this competition.”
Before the first leg, former Barcelona manager and captain Guardiola described Real as “the kings of Europe” and Rodri, who played for another of their rivals in Atletico, agreed.
“I have the same feeling,” he said. “Real Madrid are more than a team. They have that way of playing that means you can never relax. Even if you are winning 3-0, 4-0, they come back.”
Real’s European record stands in contrast to City’s, with a solitary Champions League semi-final to their name, but Rodri underlined their ambition to conquer Europe. “It is a tournament we haven’t achieved in this team,” he said. “It is our dream.”
Real manager Zinedine Zidane is set to make a late decision whether to start with Eden Hazard, who has been struggling with an ankle injury.
“We are the sort of team that wants to play against opponents when they have their best players on the field,” said Rodri. “We are aware of the dangers Hazard can bring and we are ready for him.”
Real will however be without Sergio Ramos, who is suspended after his first-leg red card, and Gareth Bale, who was not even selected in the squad to travel.
City are still without the former Atletico forward Aguero, who has undergone knee surgery. Guardiola is unsure if the Argentinian will be fit for the knockout tournament in Lisbon that follows. “Hopefully, but right now, I don’t know,” he said. “He is still in Barcelona. He is getting better.”
In a different way, City could lose Eric Garcia. The 19-year-old defender, whose deal expires next summer, has rejected an improved and extended offer and has been linked with his native Barcelona.
“He announces that he doesn’t want to extend his contract with Manchester City,” Guardiola said. “I imagine he wants to play in another place.”
A recurring theme in City’s three Champions League exits under him has been huge costly spells in games. Monaco scored two goals in nine minutes in 2017, Liverpool three in 19 in 2018 and Tottenham two in four last year.
Guardiola has talked to his players about avoiding a repeat. “We have spoken about it many times and we know it,” he said. “If we want to step forward and win this competition we have to be better in this area.
"More than conceding a goal is the way we concede a goal. If they are brilliant, we have to accept it but most of the goals, we have to avoid them.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
THE DRAFT
The final phase of player recruitment for the T10 League has taken place, with UAE and Indian players being drafted to each of the eight teams.
Bengal Tigers
UAE players: Chirag Suri, Mohammed Usman
Indian: Zaheer Khan
Karachians
UAE players: Ahmed Raza, Ghulam Shabber
Indian: Pravin Tambe
Kerala Kings
UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Abdul Shakoor
Indian: RS Sodhi
Maratha Arabians
UAE players: Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat
Indian: S Badrinath
Northern Warriors
UAE players: Imran Haider, Rahul Bhatia
Indian: Amitoze Singh
Pakhtoons
UAE players: Hafiz Kaleem, Sheer Walli
Indian: RP Singh
Punjabi Legends
UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Sandy Singh
Indian: Praveen Kumar
Rajputs
UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed
Indian: Munaf Patel
Mane points for safe home colouring
- Natural and grey hair takes colour differently than chemically treated hair
- Taking hair from a dark to a light colour should involve a slow transition through warmer stages of colour
- When choosing a colour (especially a lighter tone), allow for a natural lift of warmth
- Most modern hair colours are technique-based, in that they require a confident hand and taught skills
- If you decide to be brave and go for it, seek professional advice and use a semi-permanent colour
THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
PRESIDENTS CUP
Draw for Presidents Cup fourball matches on Thursday (Internationals first mention). All times UAE:
02.32am (Thursday): Marc Leishman/Joaquin Niemann v Tiger Woods/Justin Thomas
02.47am (Thursday): Adam Hadwin/Im Sung-jae v Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay
03.02am (Thursday): Adam Scott/An Byeong-hun v Bryson DeChambeau/Tony Finau
03.17am (Thursday): Hideki Matsuyama/CT Pan v Webb Simpson/Patrick Reed
03.32am (Thursday): Abraham Ancer/Louis Oosthuizen v Dustin Johnson/Gary Woodland
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The biog
Mission to Seafarers is one of the largest port-based welfare operators in the world.
It provided services to around 200 ports across 50 countries.
They also provide port chaplains to help them deliver professional welfare services.
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Step by step
2070km to run
38 days
273,600 calories consumed
28kg of fruit
40kg of vegetables
45 pairs of running shoes
1 yoga matt
1 oxygen chamber
