Everton's Nikica Jelavic acknowledges the fans as he leaves the field as the match-winner against Tottenham Hotspur.
Everton's Nikica Jelavic acknowledges the fans as he leaves the field as the match-winner against Tottenham Hotspur.

Premier League best and worst: Hat off to a winner for Everton



Best thief: Jelavic

They may left it as late as possible, but Everton were good value for their win over Tottenham Hotspur on the balance of play at Goodison Park yesterday.

Nikica Jelavic ghosted in with the stealth of a cat-burglar to steal all three points at the death, 88 seconds after Steven Pienaar had equalised.

And even then the Croatian striker had enough time to commit one more act of pilfering.

As he went to the corner flag to celebrate in a mosh-pit of jubilant Evertonians, he made the most of the fact they were wildly distracted by pinching a blue woolly hat straight off a supporter's head.

Which was a bit harsh. Jelavic earns a mint for playing Premier League football. And if he had wanted an Everton beanie, he probably only had to ask.

Worst waste: Cruise's ticket

The derby game is the one day of the season when, more than any other, the longest-suffering, die-hard supporters should be accommodated for.

Tickets for yesterday's meeting between City and United must have been like gold dust across Manchester way.

There is nothing worse than some fly-by-night, Jonny-come-lately being given a seat that a real fan would have given his small intestine for.

So it must have been unbelievably galling for City supporters not privileged enough to be there to see TV pictures showing Tom Cruise pacing around a corporate box on his mobile phone paying nil attention, just as the table-top fixture reached a frenzy.

Maybe he has given up on LA Galaxy now David Beckham is on his bike. Maybe he is in the UK to give acting lessons to Santi Cazorla and Co.

Or maybe he has had an undying love for City since the first day his dad took him along to watch a game from the Kippax. Maybe.

Best left-foot: Snodgrass

With an urbane former playing great as their manager, a Catalonian passing game and a free-scoring Spanish centre forward, Swansea have become Wales's answer to football's Culture Club this season.

Yet they were undone by the The Messi of East Anglia on their own patch on Saturday.

Whether it is possible to have a cultured left-boot when your name is Robert Snodgrass may be a moot point.

However, the Scottish midfielder proved again that Norwich City can do classy, left-footed playmakers, too.

First he made a delicious contribution to Steven Whittaker's opener with a touch so subtle it belonged in a painting by Turner.

And he later book-ended a valuable win in the Norwich City's ongoing battle for Premier League survival with a fine curling free-kick at the Liberty Stadium.

Worst acceptance: diving

Since when did it become acceptable to try to excuse diving? When Santi Cazorla threw himself to ground, apropos of nothing, to win a penalty for Arsenal on Saturday, the expert analyst's first thought was to look for a mitigating factor.

"There doesn't look like there was any contact," he said. "Not saying that he wasn't expecting [contact], though."

So, on the basis that Steven Reid, the West Bromwich Albion defender, was in his general vicinity, it was OK for the Spaniard to get ready to leap in the air clutching his shin?

Even Steve Clarke, the West Brom manager, said it was the referee's fault, overlooking the player's total disregard for fair play.

In the game analysis that followed, it took an age for the argument to wend its way to the conclusion that the player may have been to blame for simulating an offence that never happened. It is embarrassing. More pertinently, it is cheating.

Best penalty: Torres

Sometimes goalkeepers are able to lean on recent evidence to try to outfox an opposition penalty taker. Boaz Myhill, West Brom's goalkeeper, had been given a teaser about what to expect when Mikel Arteta lined up the ultimately clinching spot-kick for Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

Arteta had gone straight down the middle with the first penalty Arsenal were awarded earlier in the game. He repeated the trick, but Myhill was already gone.

Simon Mignolet had no such pointers when Chelsea's £50 million (Dh294.6m) striker Fernando Torres put the ball down 12 yards out in the London side's win at Sunderland.

It was his first penalty in English football. Not that a lack of practice counted against him.

His method was a refreshingly basic one, too. Torres proved that just belting the ball right into the corner of the goal usually suffices.

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.

The 12

England

Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur

Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus

Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid

PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP

Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)

Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)

Company%20Profile
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)

Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits

Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine

Storage: 128/256/512GB

Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4

Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps

Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID

Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight

In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter

Price: From Dh2,099

Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE results
Lost to Oman by eight runs
Beat Namibia by three wickets
Lost to Oman by 12 runs
Beat Namibia by 43 runs

UAE fixtures
Free admission. All fixtures broadcast live on icc.tv

Tuesday March 15, v PNG at Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Friday March 18, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium
Saturday March 19, v PNG at Dubai International Stadium
Monday March 21, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium

Reading List

Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:

Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung

How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh

The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever

Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays

How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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