Sebastian Tagliabue says he is disappointed to end “seven amazing years” with Al Wahda, with his priority now to find a new club in the UAE.
The Argentine-born striker, 35, has been told by Wahda that they will not be renewing his contract beyond its June 30 conclusion despite discussions regarding that earlier this season.
Having joined Wahda in 2013, Tagliabue has gone on to score 152 goals in 157 league appearances for the Abu Dhabi side. At present, he is 13 goals from the all-time record in the UAE top flight. The 2019/20 Arabian Gulf League is currently shut down because of the coronavirus.
Tagliabue, who lies second in this season’s charts with 15 goals in 19 matches, said he had expected to remain at Wahda following talks some time ago about an extension.
“Of course, I’m very sad, and my family’s very sad, because we have to move from Al Wahda,” Tagliabue said. “It’s my second home in football and also my family is very happy here.
“We’ve had seven amazing years. I feel Al Wahda is my family. It was a shock in the beginning when the club told me they didn’t want to give me a new contract, because I didn’t expect that. I thought we’d reach an agreement.
“For sure, I understand that one day I will leave, that I will not always be at Al Wahda. And I always said when the contract finishes we have to sit with the club to see if they want me and if I want to stay at the club. This is normal.
“I’m upset only in the way they handled my exit. For me, it’s not about money or other big things. A few days ago they told me to find a new club because they cannot pay me the offer they made me two or three months ago.
“So now I start to look for another club. But I don’t like what some people are starting to say ‘He wants too much money for his age’. It’s not about my age; it’s about what I deserve, or what I did on the pitch.”
Tagliabue, who was seeking a two-year extension with Wahda, will now begin to plot his next move. The forward has been approached tentatively by a number of clubs in the Arabian Gulf League, although as of now there has been no official offer.
He also refused to rule out a transfer outside the Emirates, but only for an attractive project.
"For my family and for my social life I would prefer to stay in Abu Dhabi, but there are a lot of good clubs in the UAE," said Tagliabue, who in January was granted UAE citizenship. "If we had to move to any club in the UAE it would be OK.
“I hope by the end of this season to have a new team. If in the next two weeks it would be amazing, because my contract with Al Wahda finishes at the end of June, so I’d like to have a club as soon as possible. We will see.”
Asked about his connection to Wahda, Tagliabue said he would not even rule out a return one day, saying: “From my side, I will never close the door to Al Wahda. Even if I have to leave now, I will say ‘See you soon’. Because maybe in the future I come back to the club, as a player or maybe as a coach. For Al Wahda, I will always open my door.”
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
Brief scoreline
Switzerland 0
England 0
Result: England win 6-5 on penalties
Man of the Match: Trent Alexander-Arnold (England)
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
