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

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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 stats

Ship name: MSC Bellissima

Ship class: Meraviglia Class

Delivery date: February 27, 2019

Gross tonnage: 171,598 GT

Passenger capacity: 5,686

Crew members: 1,536

Number of cabins: 2,217

Length: 315.3 metres

Maximum speed: 22.7 knots (42kph)

The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox

Price, base / as tested: Dh76,900 / Dh110,900

Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder

Gearbox: Nine-speed automatic

Power: 252hp @ 5,500rpm

Torque: Torque: 352Nm @ 2,500rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.5L / 100km

Jigra
Director: Vasan Bala
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
Rated: 3.5/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Sarfira

Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal 

Rating: 2/5

Company profile

Company name: Suraasa

Started: 2018

Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker

Based: India, UAE and the UK

Industry: EdTech

Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding

THE BIO

Bio Box

Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul

Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader

Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Favorite food: seafood

Favorite place to travel: Lebanon

Favorite movie: Braveheart

PROFILE OF HALAN

Started: November 2017

Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport and logistics

Size: 150 employees

Investment: approximately $8 million

Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar

How to help

Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200

The Penguin

Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz

Creator: Lauren LeFranc

Rating: 4/5

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
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Everybody%20Loves%20Touda
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Best Foreign Language Film nominees

Capernaum (Lebanon)

Cold War (Poland)

Never Look Away (Germany)

Roma (Mexico)

Shoplifters (Japan)


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