Manchester City's Europa League campaign hit a stumbling block last night in Lisbon as a moment of Brazilian magic condemned them to defeat in the first leg of their last 16 match against Sporting.
Defender Xandao netted the only goal of the game on 51 minutes, back-heeling the ball home with his back to goal after keeper Joe Hart had spilt a free kick.
The Premier League leaders were unusually toothless in attack, but will take solace from the fact that they put four goals past Porto - who are 14 points ahead of Sporting in the Portuguese SuperLiga - at the Etihad Stadium in the previous round.
City's night started on a bad note when influential captain Vincent Kompany limped off injured after just seven minutes.
Manager Roberto Mancini had clearly been hoping to rest Joleon Lescott by naming him among the substitutes but that plan was quickly abandoned as it became immediately clear Kompany could not continue.
Sporting spurned several opportunities to take an early lead.
Hart came out of his area to head away a long ball which dipped over Kolo Toure's head and could have been caught out as Stijn Schaars shot from long range but it drifted wide.
Joao Pereira forced Hart to make a smart save as Sporting pieced together a good move and then fired wide moments later.
City had their first serious chance when the ball was worked to Gareth Barry outside the box after a corner in the 24th minute but the England midfielder curled his shot wide.
Sporting broke again as Ricky van Wolfswinkel fed Marat Izmailov in the box but Lescott blocked the Russian's shot.
Dzeko then appeared to hurt himself as he ran into the bench after attempting to keep the ball in play and City might have paid a heftier price had Diego Capel's long-range drive been on target.
City then allowed Daniel Carrico space to try a shot from distance but he too blasted wide.
City looked to make a positive start to the second half but a good break ended when David Silva lofted a shot from Kolarov's driven cross well over.
Sporting responded strongly and took the lead after 51 minutes with a brilliant finish from Brazilian defender Xandao.
Hart could only parry a free kick from Matias Fernandez but did brilliantly to block Xandao's first attempt from point-blank range. Yet he could do little to prevent City falling behind as Xandao reacted quickly and cleverly back-heeled the ball past him.
Hart almost got into trouble again minutes later as he and Lescott failed to communicate as an Izmailov cross came in but the defender headed behind.
City were indebted to Hart just after the hour when he saved low down from Van Wolfswinkel eight yards out.
Mancini brought on Mario Balotelli in the place of Edin Dzeko with 19 minutes to go and the Italian striker - recently fined a week's wages for a recent late night out - did inject some extra spark into the City attack.
Kolarov's cross dropped on to the crossbar and Lescott powered a header against the woodwork - though the whistle had already blown for a free kick - as City pressed to no avail late on leaving them with work to do in the return leg next week.
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
ETFs explained
Exhchange traded funds are bought and sold like shares, but operate as index-tracking funds, passively following their chosen indices, such as the S&P 500, FTSE 100 and the FTSE All World, plus a vast range of smaller exchanges and commodities, such as gold, silver, copper sugar, coffee and oil.
ETFs have zero upfront fees and annual charges as low as 0.07 per cent a year, which means you get to keep more of your returns, as actively managed funds can charge as much as 1.5 per cent a year.
There are thousands to choose from, with the five biggest providers BlackRock’s iShares range, Vanguard, State Street Global Advisors SPDR ETFs, Deutsche Bank AWM X-trackers and Invesco PowerShares.
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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The specs
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Transmission: Single-speed automatic
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On sale: Now
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
'Nightmare Alley'
Director:Guillermo del Toro
Stars:Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Indoor Cricket World Cup
Venue Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE squad Saqib Nazir (captain), Aaqib Malik, Fahad Al Hashmi, Isuru Umesh, Nadir Hussain, Sachin Talwar, Nashwan Nasir, Prashath Kumara, Ramveer Rai, Sameer Nayyak, Umar Shah, Vikrant Shetty
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Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
HOW TO WATCH
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Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
