Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane insists Cristiano Ronaldo should never be doubted as the Portuguese forward continues to rediscover his goalscoring form.
Ronaldo, 31, has scored 18 goals in his past 18 appearances in all competitions, including two goals in the 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the Uefa Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.
While Ronaldo's 11 goals in 18 Primera Liga matches is a decent return, it falls short of his usual standards set in previous seasons, and has contributed to Madrid's domestic struggles that has seen the club fall 17 points behind rivals Barcelona in the Primera Liga table. Madrid are in fourth place, 10 points behind Atletico Madrid in second, albeit having played one game less.
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However, Ronaldo's form in the Champions League has been remarkable, with 11 goals scored in seven games to etch his name in the history books.
After the success against PSG in midweek, Ronaldo and Real Madrid turn their attention back to league duties on Sunday when they travel to face ninth-placed Real Betis, and Zidane has warned against writing off the threat posed by Ronaldo.
"Cristiano is one of those players you can´t doubt about, even when he´s not scoring," Zidane said during his pre-match press conference on Saturday. "He´s a player who can cause a great mess to the rival with very few chances to score and we all know this.
"I don´t know if he´s in his best shape now, but he knows there´s a long season ahead of us, we all know that, and he´ll be there. But we're all talking about the PSG second leg and there are five league matches before that. For me it is important what we are going to do before that."
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
if you go
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
