Max Taylor is far from the best-known name in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Manchester United squad in Kazakhstan, yet he is easily the most inspiring figure preparing to face Astana in the Europa League.
Should Manchester-born 19-year-old Taylor make his debut on Thursday, it will be one of the sporting stories of the year.
With the club since 2014, the defender's progress was brought to an abrupt halt in the cruellest of manners last year when diagnosed with testicular cancer.
Surgery, chemotherapy and yet more surgery replaced football as his focus.
Yet Taylor is determined that he will not let cancer define him and wants to show other sufferers that it is possible to dream.
"I always had a mindset of that there's no way I'm not going to be alive after this," said Taylor. "But there were times where I thought 'will I be able to play football after this?' And there were times where I thought there's no way I can get back to that.
"But I think the message that I want to get out to everyone is it is possible – and it is possible to do more than what I've done after you've gone through such trauma. It is possible to get back wherever you want to go."
Taylor's place in Solskjaer's squad is remarkable after the journey he has endured.
The defender, formerly known as Max Dunne, signed professional terms at Old Trafford in January 2018 – but by that August his world was turned upside down after a cyst was discovered.
Taylor's left testicle was removed on October 4 and a biopsy showed it to be the primary cancer, but a CT scan showed that it had "spread through the abdomen, the lymph nodes in the abdomen and started a few specks on the lungs".
An intense, draining nine-week course of chemotherapy followed, with a single day involving as much as eight hours of chemo and four hours of hydration.
That demanding treatment got rid of the cancer, but more surgery was required to remove swollen lymph nodes: three on his left side and three next to the aorta – including one that had gone onto the main artery carrying blood from the heart.
"It was sort of a time where I am in no man's land here – I can't go back to what I normally do, I still feel ill from the chemo," Taylor said of the six-week wait for his cells to recover enough for the five-and-a-half hour operation in March.
"I've got the all clear, but I can't really be that happy because I just had a big surgery, can't go back to football.
"That was like the low point because I was still in, couldn't really do much like things you take for granted. I couldn't even sit up because it was a cut straight through my abdominal."
It was not until May that Taylor was finally able to return to the training ground, but the road to fitness was slower and more difficult than even he expected.
Yet the teenager has kicked on with the support of friends, family and those at the Christie hospital, which the defender is raising funds for and recently returned to in a bid to help raise morale for those in the midst of their battle.
Taylor could also not have asked any more from United. He will never forget then-manager Jose Mourinho coming up to him at the training ground at the start of his battle and saying, "don't worry about it, you will be okay, you're a fighter" – nor the support shown by successor Solskjaer.
"I remember the first day I came in to see the doctors and staff and I still wasn't that well," Taylor said. "I was still a bit frail when I was walking and stuff. I'd get out of breath, even just going upstairs or whatever.
"They took me outside training and just watched the session. It was amazing because I hadn't obviously been back and then to go over and watch the first team and just stand with them and have a chat was really uplifting."
Taylor, boosted by those around him, would take it a tiny bit further every week as he pushed to return, finally joining in with training in September.
Having come off the bench for his first minutes as United Under-23s won at Swansea last month, the defender stepped out again when the development team beat Sunderland at Old Trafford on Friday.
Now, remarkably, he is in the first-team squad in Kazakhstan, preparing for a Europa League match and a potential senior debut.
"There's a lot of people out there who think, like I did, that people only remember them for having cancer," Taylor said. "They'd be like 'ah, that's what you've done, you're amazing to get out of that'.
"But I think the message is that you can be more than that – and I want to be more than that.
"Yeah, it's a part of me and I'm not going to hide from it. But that's what it is: it's a part of me, it doesn't define me.
"The cancer is something that has happened, but it's not going to be what people remember me for.
"I don't just want to be a footballer; I want to be someone who people look up to in terms of raising money and helping others."
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
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Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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Director: Sean Baker
Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe
Four stars
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
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In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
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Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
If you go
Flying
Despite the extreme distance, flying to Fairbanks is relatively simple, requiring just one transfer in Seattle, which can be reached directly from Dubai with Emirates for Dh6,800 return.
Touring
Gondwana Ecotours’ seven-day Polar Bear Adventure starts in Fairbanks in central Alaska before visiting Kaktovik and Utqiarvik on the North Slope. Polar bear viewing is highly likely in Kaktovik, with up to five two-hour boat tours included. Prices start from Dh11,500 per person, with all local flights, meals and accommodation included; gondwanaecotours.com
Bugatti Chiron Super Sport - the specs:
Engine: 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16
Transmission: 7-speed DSG auto
Power: 1,600hp
Torque: 1,600Nm
0-100kph in 2.4seconds
0-200kph in 5.8 seconds
0-300kph in 12.1 seconds
Top speed: 440kph
Price: Dh13,200,000
Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport - the specs:
Engine: 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16
Transmission: 7-speed DSG auto
Power: 1,500hp
Torque: 1,600Nm
0-100kph in 2.3 seconds
0-200kph in 5.5 seconds
0-300kph in 11.8 seconds
Top speed: 350kph
Price: Dh13,600,000
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
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Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
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