The late Brian Clough was never short of an opinion, whether complimentary or not.
One gem was about Martin O'Neill, a player he could never fully control under his charge at Nottingham Forest, but admired and respected as a player and then manager.
"Anybody who can do anything in Leicester but make a jumper has got to be a genius," said Clough.
O'Neill was certainly viewed in that light by followers of the Foxes as he took them from English football's second tier to Europe on the back of two successes in the League Cup in 1997 and 2000.
Having also won the competition twice as a player with Clough at Forest, it is one that O'Neill obviously enjoys. A fifth victory will be within reach on February 28 after he guided Aston Villa into the final - their first since 1996 - following an enthralling 6-4 semi-final second leg victory, 7-4 on aggregate, over Blackburn Rovers.
Comparisons with Clough have and will always follow O'Neill's career. Strong-willed and motivational, the characteristics are similar even if the Northern Irishman is a touch more subtle, intelligent, with his acerbic comments and less likely to be as volatile.
Converting James Milner from a winger to a central midfielder is the sort of move Clough might have made. It has been inspired as O'Neill agreed Milner was again sensational in the role against Rovers.
But despite his methods, the passion and past achievements, he will remain in the shadow of one of English football's greatest managers until a major prize comes his way.
When he went to Celtic, he became the first manager since the legendary Jock Stein to win the Scottish treble.
That counts for little in England these days. Clough won the league championship and two European Cups with Forest. With expectations high, those are the targets, and the jury is still out on whether O'Neill can achieve that with Villa and be regarded as a great, rather than good, manager.
He has patiently built his squad since he took over in 2006, luring the best talent with the emphasis on future and a belief that success will follow. In Milner, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Ashley Young, Stewart Downing and Fabian Delph, there is a vision of England's future too.
But prizes, not potential, are what matter for both O'Neill and his players. The Carling Cup will do for starters and Villa confirmed their Wembley place with a performance that highlighted their growing maturity and mirrored the energy and enthusiasm of their manager.
O'Neill kept cajoling from the sidelines after Nikola Kalinic's double had put Rovers ahead and Villa came back to rack up their highest goal tally since they thrashed Derby 6-0 in April, 2008.
Rovers did not deserve that. For half an hour they out-fought and out-thought Villa.
Then it turned sour. A nudge in the back by Agbonlahor on Ryan Nelsen went unseen and allowed Stephen Warnock to finish against his former club from close range, before double punishment followed Chris Samba's lunge on Agbonlahor in the box.
The central defender was sent off and Milner confidently dispatched the penalty. Two deflections, one off the unlucky Steven Nzonzi and Agbonlahor, a calm finish by Emile Heskey and Ashley Young's injury-time solo strike, piled on the misery for Rovers.
Goals from Martin Olsson, with an acrobatic effort, and Brett Emerton left manager Sam Allardyce unhappy over the refereeing, but proud of their effort.
O'Neill was prouder and Milner reflected the mood under his charge. "We are full of confidence at the moment and we know that we are more than capable of beating anyone on our day," he said.
@Email:akhan@thenational.ae
Defending champions
World Series: South Africa
Women’s World Series: Australia
Gulf Men’s League: Dubai Exiles
Gulf Men’s Social: Mediclinic Barrelhouse Warriors
Gulf Vets: Jebel Ali Dragons Veterans
Gulf Women: Dubai Sports City Eagles
Gulf Under 19: British School Al Khubairat
Gulf Under 19 Girls: Dubai Exiles
UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
International Invitational: Speranza 22
International Vets: Joining Jack
EA Sports FC 25
Developer: EA Vancouver, EA Romania
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
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Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
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Director: Minkie Spiro
Rating:2/5
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Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany
Directed by: Matt Shakman
Rating: Four stars
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Barbie
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What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
THE%20SPECS
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Alnamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMicrofinance%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFamily%20offices%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Fasset%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2019%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mohammad%20Raafi%20Hossain%2C%20Daniel%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%242.45%20million%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2086%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-series%20B%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Investcorp%2C%20Liberty%20City%20Ventures%2C%20Fatima%20Gobi%20Ventures%2C%20Primal%20Capital%2C%20Wealthwell%20Ventures%2C%20FHS%20Capital%2C%20VN2%20Capital%2C%20local%20family%20offices%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
HEY%20MERCEDES%2C%20WHAT%20CAN%20YOU%20DO%20FOR%20ME%3F
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Voy!%20Voy!%20Voy!
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yallacompare profile
Date of launch: 2014
Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer
Based: Media City, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: 120 employees
Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)
Specs – Taycan 4S
Engine: Electric
Transmission: 2-speed auto
Power: 571bhp
Torque: 650Nm
Price: Dh431,800
Specs – Panamera
Engine: 3-litre V6 with 100kW electric motor
Transmission: 2-speed auto
Power: 455bhp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: from Dh431,800