Wenger’s highs and lows



Here is a look at some of the highs and lows of Arsene Wenger's reign as Arsenal manager:

HIGH: The unheralded former Monaco and Nagoya Grampus Eight coach is appointed Arsenal manager in September 1996. Wenger wins his first game in charge 2-0 at Blackburn, with two goals from Ian Wright as the Gunners go on to finish in third place in the Premier League and secure a place in the Uefa Cup.

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HIGH: Under Wenger’s guidance, Arsenal win the 1997/1998 Premier League title and secure the Double with victory over Newcastle United in the FA Cup final.

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LOW: Arsenal have to make do with runners-up spot in the 1998/1999 league race to Manchester United, who also knock them out of the FA Cup semi-finals after a replay.

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LOW: It is second best again for Wenger’s men in 2000 after they finish behind United and although they reach the final of the Uefa Cup, Arsenal suffer an agonising penalty shoot-out defeat to Galatasaray in Copenhagen.

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LOW: Wenger receives a 12-match touchline ban after being found guilty by the Football Association of “threatening behaviour and physical intimidation” to fourth official, Paul Taylor, after defeat on the opening day of the 2000/2001 season at Sunderland. The decision is later overturned by an appeal board.

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LOW: More heartache for the Gunners as they are beaten to the Premier League title by United once more, and then lose the 2001 FA Cup final against Liverpool to a late double from Michael Owen despite dominating the match.

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HIGH: The 2001/02 campaign sees Wenger’s Arsenal rejuvenated as the likes of Sol Campbell, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Fredrik Ljungberg, Thierry Henry and Robert Pires drive the side on to a second double, securing the league title with victory over United at Old Trafford having beaten Chelsea in the FA Cup final.

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HIGH: Arsenal are runners-up to United again in May 2003, but retain the FA Cup by beating Southampton 1-0 at the Millennium Stadium,

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HIGH: In June 2003, Wenger receives an honorary OBE in the Queen’s birthday honours list.

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HIGH: Wenger’s crowning glory as his “Invincibles” are champions having gone through the entire 2003/2004 season unbeaten.

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LOW: Arsenal’s 49-match unbeaten league run is finally ended with a 2-0 defeat in a feisty encounter with United at Old Trafford in October 2004. The match became known as the ‘battle of the buffet’ following a heated exchange with Sir Alex Ferguson in the tunnel after the match.

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HIGH: Arsenal win the 2005 FA Cup with a penalty shoot-out win over United.

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LOW: Arsenal suffer a defeat in the 2006 Uefa Champions League final by Barcelona in Paris, where goalkeeper Jens Lehmann is sent off early in the first half.

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HIGH: Arsenal move to the 60,000-seater Emirates Stadium for the start of the 2006/2007 season, with Wenger having overseen the club’s transition from Highbury.

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LOW: Arsenal reach the final of the Carling Cup against Chelsea. Despite taking the lead through Theo Walcott’s first goal for the Gunners, Didier Drogba strikes twice to secure victory for Chelsea in Cardiff.

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LOW: Wenger’s long-time ally David Dein leaves his role as Arsenal vice-chairman in April 2007, which is followed by the sale of Thierry Henry, Arsenal’s club-record scorer, to Barcelona in the summer.

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LOW: In February 2008, Arsenal striker Eduardo suffers an horrific injury in a tackle from Martin Taylor at Birmingham, which leads to Wenger calling for the defender to be “banned for life” in the immediate aftermath. Arsenal are eventually overtaken by Manchester United and Chelsea as they finish third.

HIGH: Wenger ends speculation about his future by penning a new three-year deal in August 2010.

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LOW: Arsenal suffer a shock defeat to Birmingham in the 2011 Carling Cup final at Wembley after a mix-up between goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny and defender Laurent Koscielny gifts Blues striker Obafemi Martins a late winner at Wembley. Arsenal see their title challenge fade and also go out of the FA Cup to United.

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HIGH: Goals from Robin van Persie and Andrei Arshavin give Arsenal a 2-1 win over Barcelona at the Emirates Stadium in February 2011. However, Lionel Messi inspires the Spaniards to a 3-1 victory in the return leg, where Van Persie is sent off and Nicklas Bendtner misses a late chance to send Arsenal through.

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LOW: Arsenal reluctantly sell club captain Cesc Fabregas back to his boyhood club Barcleona, while Samir Nasri leaves for Manchester City in another big-money departure to leave Wenger’s plans for the 2011/2012 campaign in tatters.

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LOW: The Gunners are thrashed 8-2 at Manchester United and end August 2011 just above the relegation zone, with defeat away to Tottenham in October making it the worst start to a season in 58 years.

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LOW: In February 2012, Arsenal are thrashed 4-0 by AC Milan in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie, a result Wenger labels “our worst night in Europe”. Arsenal win the second leg at home 3-0, but the damage had already been done.

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HIGH: After three successive draws, the Gunners beat West Bromwich Albion 3-2 on the final day of the season to snatch third place in the table ahead of Tottenham and so qualify for the Champions League once again, with captain Van Persie plundering 37 goals.

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LOW: Van Persie, who failed to agree a new Arsenal contract, is sold to Manchester United in August 2012.

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LOW: Arsenal are beaten 2-0 at home by Swansea City in December 2012 to sit 10th in the Premier League.

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LOW: The Gunners are beaten by League Two Bradford City in the quarter-finals of the League Cup, then lose out at home to Championship side Blackburn in the 2013 FA Cup before being outclassed 3-1 at home by Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

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HIGH: Arsenal produce a brilliant performance to win the second leg of their last 16 clash 2-0 in the Allianz Arena, but exit the competition on away goals.

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LOW: Spurs look to have taken a grip on the race for a top four finish when they beat Arsenal 2-0 at White Hart Lane - a result which then Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas declared would send the Gunners into a “negative spiral”.

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HIGH: Boosted by their victory over Bayern, Arsenal go on to win eight from the final 10 Premier League games, beating Newcastle United 1-0 on the last day, to overhaul Spurs once again and finish in the top four.

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LOW: Arsenal lose the opening game of the new Premier League season 3-1 at home to Aston Villa.

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HIGH: The club transfer record is shattered by the deadline day £42.5m signing of German playmaker Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid, as Arsenal book their place in the group stages of the Champions League and return to form to move clear at the top of the Premier League.

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HIGH: After a stuttering run of league form sees them drop to third, Arsenal beat Everton to reach the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley - where they will face Wigan Athletic for the chance to meet either Sheffield United or Hull as Wenger sets his sights on a first trophy since 2005.

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Real estate tokenisation project

Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.

The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.

Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.

The National's picks

4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
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6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
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Three ways to boost your credit score

Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:

1. Make sure you make your payments on time;

2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;

3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.

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Transmission: 8-speed automatic

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The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition and Experience

by David Gilmour

Allen Lane

A MINECRAFT MOVIE

Director: Jared Hess

Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa

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Name: Kumulus Water
 
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi

Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.

Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en

NO OTHER LAND

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Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

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Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

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Saturday's schedule at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

GP3 race, 12:30pm

Formula 1 final practice, 2pm

Formula 1 qualifying, 5pm

Formula 2 race, 6:40pm

Performance: Sam Smith