Haidar Alo Ali may not have been too impressed with the narrow margin of Al Wahda's 1-0 win over Al Nasr on Sunday night, but the defender does not care as long as his team can keep getting three points and stay on Al Jazira's tail. Fernando Baiano's 10th goal of the season had given Wahda a 32nd-minute lead in the game played in Ajman, but following that they toiled in front of goal.
Nasr had been ordered to play two home matches behind closed doors at neutral venues after fans threw bottles and sandals at the match officials in a game against Al Ahli. Ali believes the victory, which moves them back to within two points of the leaders Jazira as the season reaches the halfway point, should have been more comfortable. "Yes, we could have won by a better margin," he said. "We created plenty of opportunities and were the better team. But at this stage of this season, all that matters is three points. It doesn't matter how many goals we score as long we can keep winning and stay close to Jazira."
The UAE international believes that Wahda are improving by the game and will only get better as the championship battle continues. "We are blending better than at the start of season and there is a better understanding between the key players now, he said." Ali is confident that Wahda's strikers will give his team the edge, adding: "Ismail Matar is rediscovering his form after returning from injury and that is really crucial from the team's perspective. He is a key player and played a big part in Baiano's goal with a first-touch.
"Baiano, of course, is class. He is really sharp inside the box and rarely misses any opportunity. So, overall, I think we have a good opportunity of upstaging Jazira at some point." @Email:arizvi@thenational.ae
<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html" charset="UTF-8" /></head><body><!--PSTYLE=* Labels%3aFH Label 18 Sport--><p>Beach soccer</p><!--PSTYLE=BY Byline--><p>Amith Passela</p><p /></body></html>
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Warlight,
Michael Ondaatje, Knopf
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)
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
