In November 2007 Alex McLeish was given the opportunity to prove himself in the one environment that could make him quit his job as Scotland manager.
The attraction of the English Premier League was high and the chance to take charge at Birmingham City offered the challenge he craved.
McLeish had almost taken Scotland to Euro 2008, but described club football as a "fix" he needed to satisfy.
He is not the only one with such an addiction. It is a reason why Sir Alex Ferguson, who turned 68 just 10 days ago, will be in the opposite dugout today when Manchester United head to St Andrew's.
McLeish saw that same desire 32 years ago when he played under Ferguson at Aberdeen and, like many more, he soaked up knowledge from a man he has always admired.
"It's helped my education and made me better at what I've done as a player and coach," he said.
Ferguson made McLeish and his Aberdeen teammates believe they could beat anybody.
Unfashionable yet undaunted, they challenged the dominance of Celtic and Rangers and humbled the European giants of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid to claim the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1983.
Ferguson has spent 24 years mostly replicating that success at Old Trafford. With an unbeaten run of 12 games, including draws against Manchester City, Liverpool and the leaders Chelsea, Birmingham have performed way beyond expectations.
McLeish has got the best out of players whose best days seemed behind them.
One, Stephen Carr, retired 13 months ago after being released by Newcastle. Two months later, he joined Birmingham and has been a vital part in defence.
McLeish will now seek to build on this foundation with more quality and depth.
The Spanish midfielder Michel has signed from Sporting Gijon, and Kenwyne Jones, the Sunderland striker, could be another addition, although McLeish will have to rely on the old guard against United.
The surprise FA Cup third round defeat at home to Leeds, now two divisions below them, last weekend - United's third loss in six games - highlighted the inconsistency of the champions.
"They will be a bit like a wounded animal and extremely dangerous," said Mcleish.
"I don't believe there will be any complacency from us. If we can get something from them then I think we will still be punching above our weight."
A cautious approach is wise. As the United winger Ryan Giggs warned: "The turn of the year is when we are notoriously at our best."
@Email:akhan@thenational.ae
Birmingham v Man Utd, 9.30pm, Showsports 1&2
On-loan forward Landon Donovan, who goes straight into Everton's squad for a tough away trip to Arsenal, is relishing the chance to debut against the Gunners.
"Arsenal are a very good team playing very well right now," said Donovan, who has joined the Toffees on a 10-week loan spell from Los Angeles Galaxy while the Major League Soccer season is on a close-season break. "I'm hoping to play and it would be a great experience but I'm here to help this team win, whatever that takes."
With injuries to strikers Robin van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner, Croatian forward Eduardo, who has scored two goals in his past two games, is likely to start up-front again for Arsene Wenger's side who are suddenly back in the title race.
Arsenal v Everton, 7pm, Showsports 1&2
Wigan are looking to record back-to-back victories for the first time this season. With midfielder Mohammed Diame their only injury concern, the Latics manager Roberto Martinez is considering giving several of the fringe players who excelled in last week's FA Cup win over a Hull a league start.
"We've been working hard to get the levels of competition up and prepare our younger players to have an impact on the game," he said.
Sixth-placed Villa need to get back among the goals if they are to avoid three consecutive losses. For Martin O'Neill's Champions League chasing side, the trip to lowly Wigan, who sit 16th, represents an ideal opportunity to get back to winning ways. They are boosted by the return of James Milner following a foot injury.
Wigan v Aston Villa, 7pm, Showsasha
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The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
SANCTIONED
- Kirill Shamalov, Russia's youngest billionaire and previously married to Putin's daughter Katarina
- Petr Fradkov, head of recently sanctioned Promsvyazbank and son of former head of Russian Foreign Intelligence, the FSB.
- Denis Bortnikov, Deputy President of Russia's largest bank VTB. He is the son of Alexander Bortnikov, head of the FSB which was responsible for the poisoning of political activist Alexey Navalny in August 2020 with banned chemical agent novichok.
- Yury Slyusar, director of United Aircraft Corporation, a major aircraft manufacturer for the Russian military.
- Elena Aleksandrovna Georgieva, chair of the board of Novikombank, a state-owned defence conglomerate.
Veere di Wedding
Dir: Shashanka Ghosh
Starring: Kareena Kapoo-Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania
Verdict: 4 Stars
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Spider-Man%202
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The Intruder
Director: Deon Taylor
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Michael Ealy, Meagan Good
One star
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.
Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
The Gentlemen
Director: Guy Ritchie
Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant
Three out of five stars
Match info:
Wolves 1
Boly (57')
Manchester City 1
Laporte (69')
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
Januzaj's club record
Manchester United 50 appearances, 5 goals
Borussia Dortmund (loan) 6 appearances, 0 goals
Sunderland (loan) 25 appearances, 0 goals
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
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Results
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Ziyadd, Richard Mullen (jockey), Jean de Roualle (trainer).
7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m
Winner: Barney Roy, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m
Winner: Secret Advisor, Tadhg O’Shea, Charlie Appleby.
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Plata O Plomo, Carlos Lopez, Susanne Berneklint.
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
Winner: Salute The Soldier, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million