Being pitted in a group with football royalty such as Juventus and Manchester City at the Club World Cup leaves plenty of scope for daydreaming for Al Ain’s players.
Maybe they will have the chance to snuff out the threat of Dusan Vlahovic in their opening game, or tackle Erling Haaland, or stick a goal past Ederson when they face City.
With that in mind, the final fixture of Group G, against Wydad, could feel like something of a come down. But for two players, it might be the biggest fixture of any, and a chance to snatch some very meaningful personal bragging rights.
Wydad are flying the flag for Morocco at the Fifa Club World Cup. In domestic competition, their fiercest rivalry is with city neighbours Raja Casablanca.
Just lately it has started to feel like Raja have become a feeder club for Al Ain. The Garden City club certainly would not be in the United States were it not for the magnificent Soufiane Rahimi.
Rahimi was the outstanding player when Al Ain won the 2024 AFC Champions League, with a series of extraordinary displays against Al Nassr, Al Hilal and Yokohama F Marinos.
He has since been joined at the club by his younger brother, Houssine, who is also a striker of some promise.
To say the siblings were former Raja players undersells the point. They were as good as reared there, having grown up on site at Raja’s training ground as sons of the club’s long-serving kit man.
After arriving at Al Ain just in time for this tournament, Houssine was quick to pay thanks to the club which brought him to this point.
“I will never forget the support of my colleagues at Raja Casablanca, the club that supported me during challenging times,” Houssine, 23, said.
“But today I am opening a new page with Al Ain, with a strong desire to repay appreciation to everyone who gave me this opportunity.”
Houssine said that having the chance to play alongside his older brother provides a “special flavour,” that gives him “double motivation on and off the field”.
He has seen the way the Ainawi – the club’s supporters – have taken his brother to their hearts, and he wants to make them proud, too.
“I promise to show my fighting spirit for the badge I wear in every match,” Houssine said.
“My ambitions are great. I know very well that [reaching the top of the] podium and winning titles every season is the goal of this great club. I ask God that we can celebrate championships together.”
The scope of the challenge facing Al Ain in the United States is significant. They will likely enter each game they play as the underdogs. But Soufiane says that just means the potential gains are even greater.
“They’re huge teams,” Soufiane, 29, said. “Each one of us wants to give their best and make the whole world notice.
“These matches make men, and are played with passion and heart. Thank God, we’re playing against big teams that will make us perform well.
“First off, we have great ambitions, like any team that’s taking part in this major tournament. Hopefully, we’ll perform at our best for Al Ain. We have big ambitions, like every team in this major tournament.
“We hope to live up to our fans’ expectations, as well as those of every football fan. Nothing is impossible in football. We’ll play with everything we’ve got and we hope to achieve our goal.”
The idea that “nothing is impossible” is a good mantra for Al Ain’s players to take into this competition; at times last season, it must have seemed like much was impossible.
The season that followed their Champions League success was a miserable one. The signs were ominous at the very start, when they gave up a 3-0 lead in a UAE Pro League games against lowly Bataeh.
“What we did last season, winning the Champions League, was a miracle,” Hernan Crespo, the then manager, said after that draw in Sharjah. It certainly quickly became all too much for him, and the Argentine paid with his job.
His replacement, Leonardo Jardim, did not last the season, and now they have Vladimir Ivic in the dugout at the Club World Cup.
Ivic himself is confident they have improved on his watch, even if a fifth-place finish in the Pro League was underwhelming.
If Bataeh were a match for them, it is daunting to think what the likes of Juventus and City could do. But with Soufiane in their ranks, they will always have a puncher’s chance.
“This year was special for Soufiane Rahimi considering all that I’ve achieved,” said Soufiane, who followed up his MVP award in the Champions League by finishing top scorer at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“We’re striving for more every year; 2024 was great for me and it’ll live long in my memory. I hope the coming years will be more like this past one.
“Hopefully, I’ll be one of the tournament’s top scorers or one of the players who makes an impact. I always say that nothing’s impossible in football.
“You need to believe in your abilities. Thankfully, I’m one of those players who does believe in their abilities, and nothing’s impossible in football.
“Most importantly, I’ll keep my ambitions and the emotions that I had in the AFC Champions League and the Olympics. Hopefully, I can keep the same level of focus and aspiration.”
Marathon results
Men:
1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13
2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25
4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46
5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30
2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01
3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30
4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43
5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
How to get exposure to gold
Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.
A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.
Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.
Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.
London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long
However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.
2019 ASIAN CUP FINAL
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre flat-six twin-turbocharged
Transmission: eight-speed PDK automatic
Power: 445bhp
Torque: 530Nm
Price: Dh474,600
On Sale: Now
2019 Asian Cup final
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Power: 272hp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 331Nm from 5,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.7L/100km
On sale: now
Price: Dh149,000
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Results:
2.15pm: Handicap (PA) Dh60,000 1,200m.
Winner: AZ Dhabyan, Adam McLean (jockey), Saleha Al Ghurair (trainer).
2.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 1,200m.
Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
3.15pm: Conditions (PA) Dh60,000 2,000m.
Winner: Hareer Al Reef, Gerald Avranche, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
3.45pm: Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 1,700m.
Winner: Kenz Al Reef, Gerald Avranche, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
4.15pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup (TB) Dh 200,000 1,700m.
Winner: Mystique Moon, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
4.45pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 1,200m.
Winner: ES Ajeeb, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
'Hocus%20Pocus%202'
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
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”
Black Panther
Dir: Ryan Coogler
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Michael B Jordan, Lupita Nyong'o
Five stars
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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.
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Sweet%20Tooth
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The%20Hunger%20Games%3A%20The%20Ballad%20of%20Songbirds%20%26%20Snakes
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Profile of Hala Insurance
Date Started: September 2018
Founders: Walid and Karim Dib
Based: Abu Dhabi
Employees: Nine
Amount raised: $1.2 million
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Biog
Mr Kandhari is legally authorised to conduct marriages in the gurdwara
He has officiated weddings of Sikhs and people of different faiths from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Russia, the US and Canada
Father of two sons, grandfather of six
Plays golf once a week
Enjoys trying new holiday destinations with his wife and family
Walks for an hour every morning
Completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Loyola College, Chennai, India
2019 is a milestone because he completes 50 years in business
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
RESULTS
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Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Neo%20Mobility%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20February%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abhishek%20Shah%20and%20Anish%20Garg%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Logistics%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Delta%20Corp%2C%20Pyse%20Sustainability%20Fund%2C%20angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
