Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring against Manchester United as the Catlans ran out 3-0 winners at Camp Nou. Reuters
Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring against Manchester United as the Catlans ran out 3-0 winners at Camp Nou. Reuters
Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring against Manchester United as the Catlans ran out 3-0 winners at Camp Nou. Reuters
Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring against Manchester United as the Catlans ran out 3-0 winners at Camp Nou. Reuters

When are the Champions League semi-finals between Barcelona v Liverpool and Tottenham v Ajax?


Steve Luckings
  • English
  • Arabic

Following Wednesday night's Champions League quarter-final second legs, we now know the four teams who will compete for a place in this season's final, to be held at Atletico Madrid's Wanda Metropolitano on May 19.

Liverpool's crushing away win in Porto saw Jurgen Klopp's side set up a semi-final showdown against Lionel Messi's Barcelona while Tottenham Hotspur advanced to face Ajax after overcoming Manchester City on an insane night of drama at the Etihad Stadium.

This is the furthest Barcelona have gone since winning Europe's premier club competition in 2015 while Liverpool will look to reach their second consecutive final after losing 3-1 to Real Madrid in Kiev last year.

Four-time winners Ajax, who knocked out Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus 3-2 on aggregate after a famous win in Turin on Tuesday night, are in the last four for the first time since 1997, while Tottenham have never been beyond the quarter-finals in the Champions League era, although did reach the semi-finals of the European Cup in 1962.

Semi-final first legs (all kick-off times UAE)

Tuesday, April 30

Tottenham v Ajax, 11pm

Wednesday, May 1

Barcelona v Liverpool, 11pm

Semi-final second legs

Tuesday, May 7 

Liverpool v Barcelona, 11pm

Wednesday, May 8

Ajax v Tottenham, 11pm

When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi

  

 

 

 

Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.

 
Our legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
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  • Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
  • Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sarfira

Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal 

Rating: 2/5

if you go

The flights 

Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning. 

The trains

Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.

The hotels

Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh117,059

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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