Having put themselves on a familiar war footing on the torn battlefield of club versus country for much of the summer, the executives of Bayern Munich will have been gnashing their teeth after Wednesday's 3-2 victory by Germany over Brazil.
For all the club's reflected glory - an unprecedented seven players from Bayern started the game for the national team, and eight took part in the impressive triumph - there was an uncomfortable recognition that the football produced by this Germany team was a good deal better than that shown by Bayern three days earlier.
For Manuel Neuer, Phillip Lahm, Holger Badstuber, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Thomas Muller, Toni Kroos and Mario Gomez, beating the five-time world champions, Brazil, seems a good deal more than taking on last season's serial relegation flirters, Borussia Monchengladbach, who grabbed three points from the opening league fixture of the season.
But perhaps Wednesday was actually what Bayern's sheepish players needed after Sunday's setback, a chance to restore morale.
That would not be an argument to put too loudly in earshot of Karl Heinz Rummenigge, the vice-president of Bayern and the whole sport's loudest spokesman in favour of international federations conceding more ground - and money - to clubs in the tug-of-war over football's calendar and its hierarchy.
Rummenigge had been studiously creating headlines during the close season, hinting that European clubs might break away from existing governing bodies if their complaints about how much of football's wealth and resources are consumed by international tournaments are not addressed.
Now he hears Germany happily celebrating the "Bayern-Block" in the national team, while Bayern worry about a mental block.
These are very early days, of course. But ahead of Saturday's visit to Wolfsburg, the 2009 Bundesliga champions, there is anxiety about whether Bayern, the league's biggest spenders during the summer, have done enough, or done the right things, to correct the problems that left them well off the pace in trying to defend their 2010 title.
They were lucky, in many ways, to have scraped into pre-qualifying for the Champions League, where they will meet FC Zurich next week.
"Who are we?" was the question that the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper suggested Bayern pose to themselves, reacting to the opening day upset, the 1-0 loss to Monchengladbach. Changes to personnel have been substantial enough to both offer the alibi that Bayern need a period of adaptation but also to demand uplift.
The position of goalkeeper, so unsettled last season when the then head coach Louis Van Gaal dropped the veteran, Hans-Jorg Butt, and replaced him with the novice, Thomas Kraft, has been filled amid fanfare by Manuel Neuer, Germany's No 1, from Schalke.
The back four has two costly newcomers as well, in Rafinha and Jerome Boateng, who have returned to the Bundesliga after a year away, respectively with Genoa in Serie A and Manchester City in the Premier League.
Neuer and Boateng had both been at fault, conspicuously and even comically, for the goal Bayern conceded last weekend, which began with an unthreatening counter-attack against the run of play.
For Neuer, it would be a particularly uncomfortable debut. There are a group of Bayern fans who have displayed prominently their unhappiness at the club's having recruited a goalkeeper who once provocatively celebrated a Schalke win in front of Bayern loyalists and was a Schalke season-ticket holder from childhood.
During pre-season, Jupp Heynckes, the new Bayern coach, found himself obliged to speak out against the anti-Neuer brigade.
Heynckes's own challenge now is to show himself sufficiently distinct from Van Gaal.
He must assuage fears that by far the most gifted squad in German football can be made tougher to beat and, that, going forward, they can at least look the sum of their talented parts.
sports@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi
“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”
Company%20Profile
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Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Honeymoonish
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Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
What is tokenisation?
Tokenisation refers to the issuance of a blockchain token, which represents a virtually tradable real, tangible asset. A tokenised asset is easily transferable, offers good liquidity, returns and is easily traded on the secondary markets.
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.
Company%20Profile
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
The finalists
Player of the Century, 2001-2020: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Ronaldinho
Coach of the Century, 2001-2020: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Jose Mourinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Sir Alex Ferguson
Club of the Century, 2001-2020: Al Ahly (Egypt), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Real Madrid (Spain)
Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Club of the Year: Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid
Coach of the Year: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Hans-Dieter Flick (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Agent of the Century, 2001-2020: Giovanni Branchini, Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola
The%20specs
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Hamilton profile
Age 32
Country United Kingdom
Grands Prix entered 198
Pole positions 67
Wins 57
Podiums 110
Points 2,423
World Championships 3
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Game Of Thrones Season Seven: A Bluffers Guide
Want to sound on message about the biggest show on television without actually watching it? Best not to get locked into the labyrinthine tales of revenge and royalty: as Isaac Hempstead Wright put it, all you really need to know from now on is that there’s going to be a huge fight between humans and the armies of undead White Walkers.
The season ended with a dragon captured by the Night King blowing apart the huge wall of ice that separates the human world from its less appealing counterpart. Not that some of the humans in Westeros have been particularly appealing, either.
Anyway, the White Walkers are now free to cause any kind of havoc they wish, and as Liam Cunningham told us: “Westeros may be zombie land after the Night King has finished.” If the various human factions don’t put aside their differences in season 8, we could be looking at The Walking Dead: The Medieval Years.
COMPANY PROFILE
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
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
