England manager Gareth Southgate praised goal hero Marcus Rashford as the striker continued his renaissance by firing his country into the last 16 of the World Cup on Tuesday.
Rashford's brace in the 3-0 win against Wales was his third of the tournament having also netted in the 6-2 rout of Iran and ensured England finished top of Group B and set up a showdown against Senegal on Sunday.
The 25-year-old Manchester United striker's revival in Qatar is all the more impressive considering he was by no means a certainty to even make Southgate's World Cup squad when it was announced.
Rashford's free kick early in the second half broke Wales' stubborn resistance, while the second was perhaps more to type, as he cut inside and found the net with a sharp finish between the goalkeeper's legs.
As he raised his arms to the heavens in celebration, which he later explained was because a close friend had recently died, the image stood in contrast to last year, when Rashford's form faltered heading into the delayed Euro 2020.
He then largely played a support role at the tournament, which ended with him missing a penalty in the final shoot-out against Italy.
"It's been a challenge for him," said Southgate after handing Rashford his first start since June last year.
"I went and saw him in the summer and had a long chat, he had some clear ideas on what he felt he needed to do and you can see with his club, that has shown itself with us. We have a different player to the Euros.
"It's great for him and great for us."
Player ratings
The forward is now the joint top scorer at the World Cup alongside ylian Mbappe, Enner Valencia and Cody Gakpo.
"Moments like this, this is what I play football for. The biggest moments, the best moments," Rashford said after England topped their World Cup group for the first time since 2006.
Rashford's selection was also a vindication for Southgate, who rang the changes, drafting in the Manchester United forward and Phil Foden in place of Raheem Sterling and Bukayo Saka.
Foden was a busy presence on the flank, especially in the second half when he switched sides with Rashford, and grabbed England's second goal, a tap-in from a Harry Kane cross.
“In moments I thought both of them [Rashford and Foden] were a bit quiet in the first half," Southgate said.
"We decided to switch wings and we thought that might allow them to go on the outside but also the chance to come in and they responded really well. And of course for them both to get the goals is great."
Wales’ first World Cup since 1958 ended in devastating fashion at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium.
Robert Page’s side finished bottom of Group B with one point from three games – a 1-1 draw with the United States preceding a 2-0 defeat to Iran.
Captain Gareth Bale, who pushed away a cameraman at the final whistle who got too close to him, told the BBC: “Everyone’s disappointed but we’re all proud of what we’ve achieved to get here.
“We have to look how far we’ve come. Of course we wanted to get out of the group, but football’s difficult.
“We didn’t live up to our expectations at this tournament.
“If you’d told us two years ago that we would play in a World Cup, we’d have all pinched ourselves.
“We’ll all walk out of that changing room with our held high and proud of each other.
“It’s been difficult at this tournament, we haven’t played very well. But we’ve given everything and we won’t have any regrets.”
The 33-year-old, making a record 111th Wales appearance, did not reappear for the second half with Wales boss Robert Page saying he had been “struggling with his hamstring”.
But Bale, who had little game time for his American club Los Angeles FC ahead of the World Cup, stressed that he has no thoughts about ending his international career.
He said: “I’ll keep going as long as I can and as long as I’m wanted.
“It’s a difficult moment now but we go again in March.”
Wales start Euro 2024 qualifying against Croatia in Split on March 25.
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
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Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
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Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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UK’s AI plan
- AI ambassadors such as MIT economist Simon Johnson, Monzo cofounder Tom Blomfield and Google DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell
- £10bn AI growth zone in South Wales to create 5,000 jobs
- £100m of government support for startups building AI hardware products
- £250m to train new AI models
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
