Albert Riera fights for the ball during Liverpool's 3-1 Champions League win against PSV Eindhoven.
Albert Riera fights for the ball during Liverpool's 3-1 Champions League win against PSV Eindhoven.

Riera now tougher and wiser



Two years ago Albert Riera had his first taste of English football, but it wasn't quite as sweet as he had hoped, as a five-month loan spell at Manchester City came to nothing. A derby win against Manchester United capped a memorable debut, but just glimpses of his quality and one goal - against Newcastle - in 15 league games meant Stuart Pearce, the then manager, was not prepared to spend the little money he had available.

The Spaniard admitted he returned to Espanyol a wiser player for the experience, more aware of how to tackle rather than be tackled. The fortunes of Riera and City have certainly changed since then as the left winger returns to Eastlands today in Liverpool colours after a summer move. Riera, 26, aims to show the City faithful just how much he has improved. "It will be a little bit of a special match for me," he said. "I enjoyed my time there of course, but in football these things happen.

"If I had stayed at City then I wouldn't have come here to Liverpool. City is in the past and the most important thing for me is the present. I'm not thinking now of City, the three points are the most important thing." Riera could also line-up directly against his friend and former Espanyol teammate Pablo Zabaleta, who has added some bite to the right side of City's defence. But the Liverpool player added: "It is great Pablo is here and we speak all the time. But once on the pitch there are no friends. I will do my best against City and I have it in my mind to score against them. I want to make progress at Liverpool, to put in good performances and win something. I feel I'm getting better all the time."

City can also do better after their recent patchy form. After successive defeats against Brighton and Wigan, Mark Hughes was relieved by Thursday's 2-1 Uefa Cup win over Omonia Nicosia which saw his side reach the group stage. Liverpool will pose a stiffer test than the Cypriots, however, and show City just what they have to do to break into the league's top four. Hughes admitted the Merseyside club are a team to emulate. "Liverpool have been a top-four side for a number of years now," he said. "I sense that this season they will have a real go at trying to win the Premier League. They look confident, strong and assured. They will run the top teams very close. It is a big test for us as they are playing exceptionally well at the moment."

West Ham had some disappointing news ahead of today's game at Upton Park against Bolton when it was revealed that striker Dean Ashton will not play again until next year after undergoing surgery on an injured ankle. West Ham are short of options up front and are weighing up whether to sign out-of-contract Spanish striker Diego Tristan. The Former Deportivo La Coruna and Mallorca forward Tristan, 32, has been capped 15 times by his country.

The Bolton manager Gary Megson has hailed Zola as the finest foreign import to grace the Premier League. Megson rates the former Chelsea favourite's feats at Stamford Bridge above the achievements of Eric Cantona, Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry since the formation of the breakaway league in 1992. And he believes the Italian can transmit his success as a player to the managerial dug-out. "If Zola is anywhere near as good a manager as he was a player then he's going to be a class act," said Megson. "He's a good bloke and as a footballer I think he was one of the top three imports that came into the Premier League. You had Bergkamp, Ruud Gullit and Jurgen Klinsmann, who all raised the standard, but I think the top one was Gianfranco Zola."

David Moyes insists there is no crisis at Everton - and is pointing at the table to prove it. Everton have failed to keep a clean sheet so far this term but Moyes says he will not be panicking about the scenario and is using mathematics to back up his argument. He has noted that if Everton beat Newcastle at Goodison Park today, they will have an identical played seven, won three, drawn one and lost three record as this time last term, a season where they finished fifth in the league in what was hailed as a "successful" year.

Newcastle midfielder Danny Guthrie will be back in the Newcastle squad after missing the last three games through suspension after being sent off for kicking out at Hull's Craig Fagan last month. Aston Villa captain Martin Laursen, whose team travel to Chelsea today, said that the Londoners' long unbeaten league record "has to end sometime". Chelsea have not suffered a league defeat at Stamford Bridge for more than four years but Laursen said: "There is just no arguing with the fact that they are immense on home soil - but that unbeaten record has to end sometime and we will go to Stamford Bridge in a positive mood."

* With agencies

Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199

The specs

Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder

Power: 220 and 280 horsepower

Torque: 350 and 360Nm

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Price: from Dh136,521 VAT and Dh166,464 VAT 

On sale: now

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Tips for job-seekers
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David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East

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COMPANY PROFILE

Company: Bidzi

● Started: 2024

● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid

● Based: Dubai, UAE

● Industry: M&A

● Funding size: Bootstrapped

● No of employees: Nine

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

The specs

  Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now

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Thank You for Banking with Us

Director: Laila Abbas

Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum

Rating: 4/5

The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).

Second leg

Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm

Games on BeIN Sports

All or Nothing

Amazon Prime

Four stars

The specs

Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now

FINAL SCORES

Fujairah 130 for 8 in 20 overs

(Sandy Sandeep 29, Hamdan Tahir 26 no, Umair Ali 2-15)

Sharjah 131 for 8 in 19.3 overs

(Kashif Daud 51, Umair Ali 20, Rohan Mustafa 2-17, Sabir Rao 2-26)

SERIE A FIXTURES

Friday Sassuolo v Torino (Kick-off 10.45pm UAE)

Saturday Atalanta v Sampdoria (5pm),

Genoa v Inter Milan (8pm),

Lazio v Bologna (10.45pm)

Sunday Cagliari v Crotone (3.30pm) 

Benevento v Napoli (6pm) 

Parma v Spezia (6pm)

 Fiorentina v Udinese (9pm)

Juventus v Hellas Verona (11.45pm)

Monday AC Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)

Tree of Hell

Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla

Director: Raed Zeno

Rating: 4/5

UAE v United States, T20 International Series

Both matches at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free.

1st match: Friday, 2pm

2nd match: Saturday, 2pm

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Rameez Shahzad, Amjad Gul, CP Rizwan, Mohammed Boota, Abdul Shakoor, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat

USA squad: Saurabh Netravalkar (captain), Jaskaran Malhotra, Elmore Hutchinson, Aaron Jones, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan, Jannisar Khan, Xavier Marshall, Monank Patel, Timil Patel, Roy Silva, Jessy Singh, Steven Taylor, Hayden Walsh


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