Omar Abdulrahman
At the London Olympics, Uruguay's Luis Suarez swapped jerseys with Abdulrahman and Great Britain's Ryan Giggs, the Manchester United star, went to the UAE dressing room to have a chat with the diminutive playmaker and presented him with his game T-shirt. And then Micah Richards announced him as a star for the future.
"The No 15 is a very good player who plays beautiful football," said the English defender after witnessing Abdulrahman's skills first hand. "He'll be one of those players we should keep an eye on in the future."
Abdulrahman, 21, was the star of UAE's impressive show in London and he will be looking to enhance that reputation in Bahrain.
Ismail Matar
Winner of the Golden Ball at the 2003 Youth World Cup, Matar was the top scorer and player of the tournament when the UAE won the title at home in 2007. The Al Wahda forward scored the winner in both the semi-final and final back then, and has been the UAE's talisman since.
One of the most adored figures in Arabian Gulf football, Matar showed his worth again at the London Olympics, scoring early against Uruguay and Senegal to give the UAE the lead. He has been laid low by a chronic ankle injury since, but the Emirati fans will be hoping he is fit and raring to lead this golden generation of UAE football.
There are no better Emirati finishers in the country than him.
Ali Khaseif
Temperament-wise, there are few similarities between Khaseif and his predecessor Majed Naser, the man who guarded the UAE goal at the 2007 Gulf Cup.
They are poles apart, the first usually calm and unperturbed, and the second prone to ugly flare-ups. Had Naser shown a bit more restraint, he would have been on this trip to Bahrain as the 28 year old is still one of the best goalkeepers in the region. Khaseif, 25, now has the opportunity to take that tag. With Oman's Ali Al Habsi also absent from the tournament, the Al Jazira gloveman looks a good punt to be the goalkeeper of the tournament award.
He has been the safest goalkeeper in the Pro League this season.
Ali Mabkhout
The Al Jazira striker may not make the starting line-up in Mahdi Ali's team, at least not in the initial matches with Ismail Matar and Ahmed Khalil featuring higher up in the pecking order. Mabkhout, however, will certainly be the first-choice replacement for those two and could prove to be the UAE's supersub.
The 22 year old has been in good form this season, for both club and country, finding the target on a regular basis. And he has never lacked speed and Ricardo Oliveira, his teammate at the Abu Dhabi club, has predicted the Emirati will be the best striker in the UAE. As he himself says, "all we want is the team to win".
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Essentials
The flights: You can fly from the UAE to Iceland with one stop in Europe with a variety of airlines. Return flights with Emirates from Dubai to Stockholm, then Icelandair to Reykjavik, cost from Dh4,153 return. The whole trip takes 11 hours. British Airways flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Reykjavik, via London, with return flights taking 12 hours and costing from Dh2,490 return, including taxes.
The activities: A half-day Silfra snorkelling trip costs 14,990 Icelandic kronur (Dh544) with Dive.is. Inside the Volcano also takes half a day and costs 42,000 kronur (Dh1,524). The Jokulsarlon small-boat cruise lasts about an hour and costs 9,800 kronur (Dh356). Into the Glacier costs 19,500 kronur (Dh708). It lasts three to four hours.
The tours: It’s often better to book a tailor-made trip through a specialist operator. UK-based Discover the World offers seven nights, self-driving, across the island from £892 (Dh4,505) per person. This includes three nights’ accommodation at Hotel Husafell near Into the Glacier, two nights at Hotel Ranga and two nights at the Icelandair Hotel Klaustur. It includes car rental, plus an iPad with itinerary and tourist information pre-loaded onto it, while activities can be booked as optional extras. More information inspiredbyiceland.com
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Company%20Profile
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Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
Total eligible population
About 57.5 million people
51.1 million received a jab
6.4 million have not
Where are the unvaccinated?
England 11%
Scotland 9%
Wales 10%
Northern Ireland 14%
MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Ajax v Juventus, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Match on BeIN Sports
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite book: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Favourite holiday destination: Spain
Favourite film: Bohemian Rhapsody
Favourite place to visit in the UAE: The beach or Satwa
Children: Stepdaughter Tyler 27, daughter Quito 22 and son Dali 19
Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.
Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
