The task of any Manchester United manager is to emulate his predecessors. Louis van Gaal did not just follow in the footsteps of Alex Ferguson and David Moyes, he surpassed them, albeit in unwanted fashion.
This completed a hat-trick of defeats for United in their last three trips to Everton. It is an unholy trinity. Ferguson lost 1-0 on his final visit, Moyes went down 2-0 in his last game in charge and Van Gaal was beaten 3-0 on his first visit to Goodison Park since he was an unused substitute for Royal Antwerp in a pre-season friendly in 1976.
If, at that rate, Everton can anticipate an otherwise improbable 4-0 triumph next season, United’s heaviest defeat to the Merseysiders in 23 years suggested they are further off a return to the summit than Van Gaal anticipated.
Statistics can illustrate much and, with a selective interpretation of the figures, the Dutchman had argued United’s poor start to the season cost them a title bid. Since November, indeed, their record rivals anyone’s.
Yet they scarcely resembled potential champions. Porous at the back and blunt in attack, United laboured and lost at Goodison Park. The trio of dynamic, destructive displays against Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Manchester City have preceded a return to the days of sterile domination.
“It is the first time that I have seen that our motivation, inspiration and aggression was not as high as the opponents’,” Van Gaal said, arguing they were outfought. The alternative explanation was that United were out-thought.
They had 70 per cent of possession against Chelsea and 65 per cent at Everton and lost both, failing to score on either occasion. They are struggling to unlock structured, disciplined defences again. Roberto Martinez and Jose Mourinho may have little in common, but, while he denied it, the Everton manager appeared to have borrowed bits of his Chelsea counterpart’s blueprint. The idealist aped the pragmatist to great effect. United missed their distributor in chief.
It is always an exaggeration when sides, especially expensively assembled, star-studded line-ups, are described as one-man teams. Yet the difference between United’s results when Michael Carrick is present and absent is startling.
They win 75 per cent of games their vice-captain starts, just 38 per cent he does not. The calf strain that was a footnote to United’s derby win has had considerable consequences.
There has been a belated appreciation of Carrick’s talents of late, but such a reliance on a holding midfielder who turns 34 in the summer is dangerous. Others have been eulogised, too, and the odes to Marouane Fellaini have reflected one of the season’s feel-good stories. This represented a homecoming for the disappointment turned destroyer.
Yet while Fellaini has exerted a major influence of late, he was ineffectual at Goodison Park. Everton could afford to be generous in their applause for the man who was their record signing and became their most profitable sale. Last season, as he floundered at Old Trafford and Everton played a better brand of football, it was indisputable they were better off without him. Even when Everton have relapsed and United improved, there should be few regrets and recriminations.
Fellaini’s 2013 sale funded the purchase of James McCarthy. Indeed, it was so lucrative that he helped pay for the £28 million (Dh156m) acquisition of Romelu Lukaku, too.
Both are pieces of business that give Everton younger assets on the balance sheet. McCarthy made a considerable contribution on the pitch, too, powering forward to open the scoring.
“James is a sprinter playing in midfield,” Martinez said.
The slower Fellaini was ungainly and ill-tempered, substituted at half time to prevent him being sent off. History repeated itself with ignominy for an old Evertonian: for Moyes in 2014, read Fellaini in 2015.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Grubtech
Founders: Mohamed Al Fayed and Mohammed Hammedi
Launched: October 2019
Employees: 50
Financing stage: Seed round (raised $2 million)
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
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MATCH INFO
Arsenal 1 (Aubameyang 12’) Liverpool 1 (Minamino 73’)
Arsenal win 5-4 on penalties
Man of the Match: Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Arsenal)
How being social media savvy can improve your well being
Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.
As social media apps are becoming more and more consumed by health experts and nutritionists who are using it to awareness and encourage patients to engage in physical activity.
Elizabeth Watson, a personal trainer from Stay Fit gym in Abu Dhabi suggests that “individuals can use social media as a means of keeping fit, there are a lot of great exercises you can do and train from experts at home just by watching videos on YouTube”.
Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.
Torrena said that “most people believe that dieting and keeping fit is boring”.
However, by using social media apps keeping fit means that people are “modern and are kept up to date with the latest heath tips and trends”.
“It can be a guide to a healthy lifestyle and exercise if used in the correct way, so I really encourage my clients to download health applications” said Mrs Torrena.
People can also connect with each other and exchange “tips and notes, it’s extremely healthy and fun”.
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)
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
Result
UAE (S. Tagliabue 90 1') 1-2 Uzbekistan (Shokhruz Norkhonov 48', 86')
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Angela Bassett, Tina Fey
Directed by: Pete Doctor
Rating: 4 stars
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.
More from Armen Sarkissian
Company Profile
Company name: Yeepeey
Started: Soft launch in November, 2020
Founders: Sagar Chandiramani, Jatin Sharma and Monish Chandiramani
Based: Dubai
Industry: E-grocery
Initial investment: $150,000
Future plan: Raise $1.5m and enter Saudi Arabia next year
Haemoglobin disorders explained
Thalassaemia is part of a family of genetic conditions affecting the blood known as haemoglobin disorders.
Haemoglobin is a substance in the red blood cells that carries oxygen and a lack of it triggers anemia, leaving patients very weak, short of breath and pale.
The most severe type of the condition is typically inherited when both parents are carriers. Those patients often require regular blood transfusions - about 450 of the UAE's 2,000 thalassaemia patients - though frequent transfusions can lead to too much iron in the body and heart and liver problems.
The condition mainly affects people of Mediterranean, South Asian, South-East Asian and Middle Eastern origin. Saudi Arabia recorded 45,892 cases of carriers between 2004 and 2014.
A World Health Organisation study estimated that globally there are at least 950,000 'new carrier couples' every year and annually there are 1.33 million at-risk pregnancies.
SPECS
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Most F1 world titles
7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
7 — Lewis Hamilton (2008, ’14,’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20)
5 — Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57)
4 — Alain Prost (1985, ’86, ’89, ’93)
4 — Sebastian Vettel (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
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.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge – Rally schedule:
Saturday: Super Special Spectator Stage – Yas Marina Circuit – start 3.30pm.
Sunday: Yas Marina Circuit Stage 1 (276.01km)
Monday: Nissan Stage 2 (287.92km)
Tuesday: Al Ain Water Stage 3 (281.38km)
Wednesday: ADNOC Stage 4 (244.49km)
Thursday: Abu Dhabi Aviation Stage 5 (218.57km) Finish: Yas Marina Circuit – 4.30pm.
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
The finalists
Player of the Century, 2001-2020: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Ronaldinho
Coach of the Century, 2001-2020: Pep Guardiola (Manchester City), Jose Mourinho (Tottenham Hotspur), Zinedine Zidane (Real Madrid), Sir Alex Ferguson
Club of the Century, 2001-2020: Al Ahly (Egypt), Bayern Munich (Germany), Barcelona (Spain), Real Madrid (Spain)
Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)
Club of the Year: Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid
Coach of the Year: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Hans-Dieter Flick (Bayern Munich), Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Agent of the Century, 2001-2020: Giovanni Branchini, Jorge Mendes, Mino Raiola
Vaccine Progress in the Middle East
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
