Dirk Kuyt, in orange, shoots and scores in Holland's 5-3 victory against Hungary.
Dirk Kuyt, in orange, shoots and scores in Holland's 5-3 victory against Hungary.

Holland close in on Euro 2012 qualification



Holland moved to the brink of Euro 2012 qualification but were pushed all the way by Hungary in a thrilling Group E encounter at the Amsterdam ArenA.

Dirk Kuyt's late brace eventually settled a topsy-turvy encounter in the hosts' favour after the Hungarians – beaten 4-0 in the reverse fixture in Budapest on Friday – twice fought their way back into the game.

Robin van Persie's early strike gave the Dutch a half-time advantage but goals from Gergely Rudolf and Zoltan Gera turned the game on its head.

Gera equalised again after goals from Wesley Sneijder and Ruud van Nistelrooy had got Holland back in front, before Liverpool striker Kuyt had the final say to move Bert van Marwijk's side onto 18 points from six games.

The win put the Dutch nine points clear at the top of the group while Sweden replaced Hungary in second place on goal difference after Mikael Lustig and Sebastian Larsson scored in a 2-1 home win over Moldova.

Xavi and Juan Mata combined to make sure world and European champions Spain were not embarrassed by Lithuania on a difficult surface in Kaunas.

Xavi, embarking on his second century of appearances for Spain after winning his 100th cap in their Euro 2012 qualifier against the Czech Republic on Friday, opened the scoring after 20 minutes.

But Marius Stankevicius levelled 11 minutes after the break and it needed the intervention of substitute Mata, who brought about an own goal from Tadas Kijanskas after 70 minutes and finished himself six minutes from time, to decide things in Spain's favour.

The result extended Spain's 100 per cent start to their qualifying fixtures, and ensured they kept their lead at the top of Group I at six points over the Czech Republic, who beat Liechtenstein earlier.

The Czechs shrugged off the disappointment of their weekend loss to the Spaniards by coasting to a 2-0 win with goals from Milan Baros and Michael Kadlec.

Turkey moved into second place in Group A behind leaders Germany with a vital 2-0 win over Austria in Istanbul. Arda Turan and Gokhan Gonul scored the home side's goals.

Meanwhile Belgium also moved into contention as they hammered Azerbaijan 4-1 in Brussels. Jan Vertonghen, Timmy Simons, Nacer Chadli and Jelle Vossen scored in a comfortable win.

A late equaliser from Konstantin Vassiljev earned Estonia a 1-1 draw at home to Serbia in Group C and allowed Slovenia to cling onto second place in the group after a hard-fought goalless draw in Northern Ireland.

Tal Ben Haim scored the only goal as Israel edged past Georgia in Tel Aviv in Group F, while Adrian Mutu scored twice as Romania got back on track in Group D with a 3-1 win over Luxembourg.

Australia earned some measure of revenge for their World Cup thrashing at the hands of Germany with an unlikely victory in their international friendly in Dortmund.

Germany looked on course to replicate their 4-0 win in Durban last summer when Mario Gomez scored a 26th-minute opener in a dominant first half for the world's No 3 ranked side.

But the Socceroos stunned their hosts with two goals in four second-half minutes, first through David Carney and then a Luke Wilkshire penalty, to claim their first ever win over the Europeans.

Asamoah Gyan scored during stoppage time Tuesday, giving Ghana a 1-1 draw against England in an exhibition game at Wembley Stadium.
Gyan, a striker for Sunderland in the Premier League, wove his way through the England defence before curling a shot past goalkeeper Joe Hart.
Andy Carroll had put England in front before halftime with his first international goal. This was his second appearance for his country.

Russia were held to a shock 1-1 draw by Qatar in a friendly in Doha.

The 2022 World Cup hosts, 77 places below their opponents in the Fifa rankings, took the lead in the fourth minute through Mohamed Kasoula, but Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko levelled in the 34th minute.

The draw continued Russia's run of poor results after their 2012 qualifying draw in Armenia last week and friendly defeats to Iran and Belgium.

Andre Hainault's 58th-minute effort earned Canada a surprise 1-0 win over Belarus in Antalya in Turkey.

China beat Honduras 3-0 and Peru shared a goalless draw with Ecuador.

World Cup semi-finalists Uruguay needed a couple of glorious finishes to edge out the Republic of Ireland 3-2 in Dublin.

Defender Diego Lugano opened the scoring from close range and, after Shane Long had cancelled out his strike with a 15th-minute header, his strikers took over.

Edinson Cavani and Abel Hernandez put the visitors in the driving seat with sumptuous strikes after 22 and 40 minutes respectively.

Keith Fahey's 48th-minute penalty gave the Irish hope, but the South Americans held on.

Micael scored twice, in the 10th and 71st minutes, as Portugal beat Finland 2-0 in Aveiro.

Slovakia, who top qualifying Group B, went down to a 2-1 home defeat to Denmark.

A Kornel Salata own goal put Denmark in front after three minutes, but Filip Holosko equalised just after the half-hour mark.

Brondby winger Michael Krohn-Dehli fired in the winner in the 72nd minute.

First-half goals from Matias Fernandez and Jean Beausejour earned Chile a 2-0 win over Colombia in a friendly played in The Hague in Holland.

Martin Petrov's first-half goal earned Bulgaria a 1-0 win over Cyprus, while Greece and Poland drew 0-0.

The more serious side of specialty coffee

While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.

The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.

Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”

One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.

Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms. 

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now

COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo

Power: 201hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 320Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 6-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.7L/100km

Price: Dh133,900

On sale: now 

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Other workplace saving schemes
  • The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
  • Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
  • National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
  • In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
  • Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

Rating: 2/5

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
THE SPECS

Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine 

Power: 420kW

Torque: 780Nm

Transmission: 8-speed automatic

Price: From Dh1,350,000

On sale: Available for preorder now

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

The National in Davos

We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.

If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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PAST 10 BRITISH GRAND PRIX WINNERS

2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2012 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2011 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2007 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)

UAE squad

Humaira Tasneem (c), Chamani Senevirathne (vc), Subha Srinivasan, NIsha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Esha Oza, Ishani Senevirathne, Heena Hotchandani, Keveesha Kumari, Judith Cleetus, Chavi Bhatt, Namita D’Souza.

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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
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Director: Shankar 

Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram

Rating: 2/5

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