MIDDLESBROUGH // Manchester City can look forward to a run of three successive home games after just doing enough to remain on track for a place in next season’s Uefa Champions League following Sunday’s 2-2 draw away to Premier League strugglers Middlesbrough.
Pep Guardiola’s men had to twice come from behind to earn a point at the Riverside, with the draw helping them remain fourth – the last Champions League qualifying spot on offer to English clubs – in the table, a point and a place above Manchester United.
City manager Guardiola deserved to take much of the blame for an unconvincing display in the north-east, with the Catalan making changes that included leaving Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling on the bench until the 50th minute.
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■ Greg Lea: Chelsea result does not hinder Tottenham's resolve in win over Arsenal
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It was a bold move by Guardiola and he almost paid a price as City, lacking the pace and mobility of the missing pair, struggled to make an impact and were trailing midway through the second half to a goal from their former forward, Alvaro Negredo.
The game changed dramatically, though, when referee Kevin Friend awarded a penalty for a challenge by Marten de Roon on Sane, who “went down very, very easily”, according to Boro caretaker-manager Steve Agnew.
De Roon, the Dutch midfielder, was far less diplomatic. “It was an unbelievable decision from the referee,” he said. “It was never a penalty. I go to him, but I don’t step into him. I stayed in the same place.
“It was clever, but I think a referee has to know if someone is clever or someone tries to get something out of it. If the ball went past me, and he walks through me and the leg is there, it’s probably a clearer penalty.”
He added: “I have been fooled. Of course it feels unfair. I couldn’t do anything else. The ref had a clear view. I told him he would watch it back and he would see it’s not a penalty.”
Sane told Guardiola that it was definitely a foul, but the manager would only say: “I don’t complain about the penalties that have happened to us in the season. It could be a long list, so we are fair in our judgements.”
Sergio Aguero’s goal from the spot set up a tense 20 minutes when Calum Chambers put Middlesbrough ahead again before Gabriel Jesus, one of the players drafted in by Guardiola, earned a point with an 85th-minute header.
“I think we deserved to win, definitely. In the second half we made absolutely everything and they only crossed the line twice while we created a lot chances,” Guardiola said.
“Now we will try until the last game and we have three at home now and they will decide if we deserve to be in the Champions League next season.”
Those home games are against Crystal Palace, Leicester City and West Bromwich Albion before City finish their season at Watford. It is a run-in that should offer them enough chances to confirm a top-four finish.
Middlesbrough, in contrast, remain in the bottom three and, by the time they go to leaders Chelsea a week on Monday, may need to win to avoid relegation.
“I think this performance just showed the determination and the fighting spirit of the squad. That was evident against one of the top teams in the country,” Agnew said.
“We are looking forward to Chelse.”
“Six points behind with three games left and a good goal difference. I think the players will take a lot of confidence going into Chelsea having played so well against Manchester City.”
* Agence France-Presse
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The biog
Age: 35
Inspiration: Wife and kids
Favourite book: Changes all the time but my new favourite is Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Best Travel Destination: Bora Bora , French Polynesia
Favourite run: Jabel Hafeet, I also enjoy running the 30km loop in Al Wathba cycling track
The bio
Date of Birth: April 25, 1993
Place of Birth: Dubai, UAE
Marital Status: Single
School: Al Sufouh in Jumeirah, Dubai
University: Emirates Airline National Cadet Programme and Hamdan University
Job Title: Pilot, First Officer
Number of hours flying in a Boeing 777: 1,200
Number of flights: Approximately 300
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Nicest destination: Milan, New Zealand, Seattle for shopping
Least nice destination: Kabul, but someone has to do it. It’s not scary but at least you can tick the box that you’ve been
Favourite place to visit: Dubai, there’s no place like home
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Company name: Dharma
Date started: 2018
Founders: Charaf El Mansouri, Nisma Benani, Leah Howe
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: TravelTech
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investors: Convivialite Ventures, BY Partners, Shorooq Partners, L& Ventures, Flat6Labs
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Indians comprise the largest community with 3.3 million residents in the UAE
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015
His visit on August 23-24 will be the third in four years
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016
Sheikh Mohamed was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2017
Modi will visit Bahrain on August 24-25
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
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The biog
Hobby: "It is not really a hobby but I am very curious person. I love reading and spend hours on research."
Favourite author: Malcom Gladwell
Favourite travel destination: "Antigua in the Caribbean because I have emotional attachment to it. It is where I got married."
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Al Hilal 4 Persepolis 0
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Red card: Otayf (Al Hilal, 49')
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
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Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
'Morbius'
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
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Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
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The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Race 3
Produced: Salman Khan Films and Tips Films
Director: Remo D’Souza
Cast: Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bobby Deol, Daisy Shah, Saqib Salem
Rating: 2.5 stars
The specs: 2018 Audi RS5
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Set-jetting on the Emerald Isle
Other shows filmed in Ireland include: Vikings (County Wicklow), The Fall (Belfast), Line of Duty (Belfast), Penny Dreadful (Dublin), Ripper Street (Dublin), Krypton (Belfast)
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
