Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has signed a new two-year contract on the eve of a Premier League season that was expected to be the Chilean’s last with the club.
Pellegrini, 61, was going into the last year of his original three-year agreement, with speculation rife that City were planning to replace him with Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola next summer.
But in a show of support for the man who brought the Premier League title to the Etihad Stadium in 2014, City have extended his contract for a further 12 months.
Chief executive Ferran Soriano, said: “We are delighted to reach this agreement with Manuel Pellegrini, who has already contributed so much to the development of Manchester City in his first two years with us, and we look forward to further progress in the seasons ahead.
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“This agreement allows Manuel to focus on the challenge of guiding a team capable of both fighting for domestic titles and competing for European honours.”
Pellegrini himself said: “I am proud to manage Manchester City FC and am therefore very pleased to have agreed this contract.
“I have a very good quality group of players and a great team of people to work with on and off the field and at all levels of the club.
“I am focused on the coming season and confident that my team and I will respond to the constant support shown to us by everyone, including of course our fantastic fans.”
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The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandela
Edited by Sahm Venter
Published by Liveright
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
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Scorebox
Dubai Hurricanes 31 Dubai Sports City Eagles 22
Hurricanes
Tries: Finck, Powell, Jordan, Roderick, Heathcote
Cons: Tredray 2, Powell
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Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
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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
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
