There are ways of measuring the speed of Javier Hernandez's progress. For instance, he is keeping Dimitar Berbatov, the Premier League's top scorer, out of the Manchester United team and is a key player in Wayne Rooney's recent revival.
Yet perhaps the most significant is to compare two Champions League ties. A year ago, the Chivas striker was a guest in a private box, unknown to the majority at Old Trafford as Bayern Munich eliminated United from Europe.
Fast forward to 2011 and Hernandez himself was responsible for removing Marseille from the competition on Tuesday, a clinical brace sealing a place in the quarter-finals.
________________________________________________
Also
• Javier Hernandez brace puts Man Utd through in Champions League
• Ferguson pleased with improving Javier Hernandez
• Manchester United will beat Arsenal to the title by a whisker
• Benzema the man with the Midas touch at Real Madrid with mentor Mourinho
________________________________________________
Go back to 2010 and United were concluding a signing that was kept so secret that most of Hernandez's own family were unaware of it. Jim Lawlor, the United chief scout, tracked the young Mexican and, realising that a fine World Cup could inflate his value, a £7 million (Dh41m) deal was swiftly struck.
While Hernandez and his father and namesake, Javier, were at Old Trafford, his grandfather had been misled.
"They tricked us," Tomas Balcazar said. "They told us they were on holiday in Atlanta. The next day the phone rang and they said 'turn on the television, you'll see something very important'. The first thing we saw was the lad's mug. Then we saw the badge of Manchester United. We just couldn't believe it."
It is unbelievable in various ways. In 2009, after two years without a senior goal, according to his father: "He doubted he was capable of playing in the [Mexican] First Division." In 2011, he has proved more than capable of scoring in the English Premier League.
A tally of 10 goals is all the more remarkable because they have come from just 14 shots on target. In all competitions, his record reads: 17 starts, 16 goals.
Hernandez averages better than a goal every other game for his country, too, scoring against France and Argentina in the 2010 World Cup.
Timed as the quickest player in South Africa, running at 19.98mph (32.15kph), he has nonetheless startled his manager with the speed of his impact.
"We are surprised," said Sir Alex Ferguson. "When we brought him, we thought it would take some time to adjust and his main role was as a substitute."
In that role, he earned comparisons with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, another whose reading of the game and predatory instinct enabled him to come off the bench and score crucial goals.
"He's a great mover off the ball," said the Norwegian, until recently United's reserve team coach. "His physique is very sharp, he's clever with his runs and his finishing is very good." Teammates concur. "There are some players who are natural finishers," said Ryan Giggs. "They're ice cool and I've seen that in Javier already."
A natural scorer is a natural born footballer. "He was weaned on football since being in his cot," said Balcazar. A scorer for Mexico in the 1954 World Cup, he is one of three generations to represent his country. Javier Hernandez senior was in the squad for the 1986 World Cup and nicknamed "The Pea", which is why United's No 14 is "The Little Pea" or, as his shirt reads, "Chicharito". "All my family and those I know in Mexico call me by that name," said the 22 year old.
United were an influence on an emerging player. His heroes, he said, were: "Mexican players like Luis Garcia and [Hugo] Sanchez of course. A lot of European players too, like Ronaldo, the Brazilian one, but also players here like Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke and Ruud van Nistelrooy. All those strikers I liked to watch."
It is notable how many of Hernandez's shots are not merely on target, but directed at the corner of the net where a goalkeeper finds it hardest to save them.
It is significant, too, that his pace drags defenders deeper and opens up space for Rooney, allowing the Englishman to play as a classic No 10. The duo have combined to devastating effect against both Arsenal and Marseille, forming a partnership that bodes badly for Berbatov.
"He's threatening in space behind defenders and that's the worst thing for defenders to play against - players who know when to run, how to time their run and always think about scoring goals," Solskjaer added.
Defenders have encountered an energetic, enthusiastic nemesis. United, who have been criticised for not spending sizeable fees since Berbatov was bought for £30m in 2008, have found a bargain. And Ferguson has his new Solskjaer.
sports@thenational.ae
For reports from last night's Champions League ties, log on to thenational.ae/sport
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Profile box
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sav%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Purvi%20Munot%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24750%2C000%20as%20of%20March%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Angel%20investors%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
'C'mon C'mon'
Director:Mike Mills
Stars:Joaquin Phoenix, Gaby Hoffmann, Woody Norman
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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
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
Company%20profile
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Palestine and Israel - live updates
Mercedes V250 Avantgarde specs
Engine: 2.0-litre in-line four-cylinder turbo
Gearbox: 7-speed automatic
Power: 211hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 350Nm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.0 l/100 km
Price: Dh235,000
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.
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
IF YOU GO
The flights: FlyDubai offers direct flights to Catania Airport from Dubai International Terminal 2 daily with return fares starting from Dh1,895.
The details: Access to the 2,900-metre elevation point at Mount Etna by cable car and 4x4 transport vehicle cost around €57.50 (Dh248) per adult. Entry into Teatro Greco costs €10 (Dh43). For more go to www.visitsicily.info
Where to stay: Hilton Giardini Naxos offers beachfront access and accessible to Taormina and Mount Etna. Rooms start from around €130 (Dh561) per night, including taxes.
Know your cyber adversaries
Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.
Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.
Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.
Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.
Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.
Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.
Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.
Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.
Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.
Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.
Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S23%20ULTRA
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SPECS
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Company%20Profile
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