It is a strange world where the easy bit is holding Manchester United for an hour at Old Trafford with 10 men. But the hard part starts now for Kenny Dalglish.
Sunday contained the understandable emotion. Now it is time for the practical considerations of his return to the frontline.
After the relaxed nature of life on a cruise liner comes the hectic schedule of English football. Blackpool tomorrow, Everton on Sunday; games he approaches without his two most trusted lieutenants.
In one respect, a visit to Manchester United was the least desirable first fixture. In another, it was a shot to nothing. Expectations are so low that few anticipated anything other than a defeat.
Dalglish's comeback was sufficiently heartening in itself that it obscured the loss to hated rivals for many among the travelling fans.
Indeed, his first influence is on the supporters. Dalglish is idolised in the stands. Using his status to call for unity was an astute move. Grievances about Roy Hodgson should be consigned to the past.
The players should be aware, too, that with a manager who is idolised and owners who are being given the benefit of the doubt, there is no longer a shield for them.
The two likeliest to hang on Dalglish's every word are Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher. One is suspended now, the other injured. Footballers have a duty to know and understand the history of their club, to appreciate the importance of the men who have gone before them, to respect anyone with the illustrious achievements and luminous talents of Dalglish. That does not necessarily mean they do.
Gerrard and Carragher can appear anomalies so in the dressing room, if not on the pitch, they have a task to tell those unaware of the Dalglish legend that failing to perform for Hodgson was one thing; letting down "the King" is a more heinous crime altogether.
In his first spell at Anfield, the foreign contingent consisted of Dalglish's fellow Scots.
Whether his aura, or indeed his dry Glaswegian wit, translates for a multinational squad is an issue. After such an extended break from the touchline, it is inevitable questions will be asked if he can still manage.
It is a different world; perhaps a different game. Dalglish is quickly discovering that it is not 1991 any more.
Gerrard was dismissed for the sort of challenge that Graeme Souness might have committed with impunity in his prime; Ryan Babel contrived to generate controversy by posting a doctored picture of Howard Webb, Sunday's referee, in a Manchester United shirt on his Twitter page.
In Dalglish's day, social networking was a game of golf with Alan Hansen.
Yet since letting it be known that he was interested in the job in the summer, Dalglish has had plenty of time to consider what he would do. The first indications were there at Old Trafford; a quicker, more ball-playing defender, in Daniel Agger, was preferred to the lumbering Sotirios Kyrgiakos; Hodgson's former Fulham left-back Paul Konchesky was nowhere to be seen; youth was given a chance, with Martin Kelly starting and Jonjo Shelvey brought off the bench.
Dalglish will never be the most demonstrative individual, but there were signs he is acting quickly and decisively. An improved performance suggests he can still both organise and inspire.
He will need to. Liverpool's lamentable league form accounted for Hodgson. They are on for their lowest league finish in the 49 seasons since they were promoted back to the old Division 1in 1962. Dalglish risks tarnishing his lustrous reputation in his bid to rescue Liverpool. Succeed, however, and his standing will be even higher.
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The notion that the FA Cup is magical would probably be disputed in the north east of England today after all of its representatives exited the competition, two in the biggest shocks of the round.
In both cases, it was startling how swift the turnaround was. Newcastle United had won their previous two league matches, hammering West Ham United 5-0 on Wednesday, before meeting a Stevenage side 15th in League Two and with a mere three home wins in 11 games.
They were deservedly defeated, with Peter Winn's delightful injury-time goal summing up Stevenage's superiority.
Sunderland, meanwhile, are sixth in the top flight, the latest threat to Chelsea's status and enjoying their best season for many a year.
None of that mattered when Notts County won 2-1 at the Stadium of Light.
With Middlesbrough also going out (to League Two Burton Albion), a region that has been starved of silverware will have to wait for another year.
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Sunday's most spectacular scoreline was Chelsea's 7-0 win over Ipswich Town.
It suggested Carlo Ancelotti's team took out their frustrations on the unfortunate Championship strugglers.
While it is only a few months, however, since they were beating Premier League teams by the same margins, it does rather indicate the scale of the mess Roy Keane, the sacked manager, has left at Portman Road.
And while some lower-league teams tend to savour cup ties against the elite, Ipswich may be the exception.
Next up: Arsenal in the Carling Cup semi-finals. Sometimes an obscure exit to less garlanded opposition can seem preferable.
sports@thenational.ae
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
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THE SIXTH SENSE
Starring: Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, Hayley Joel Osment
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Rating: 5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
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GROUPS AND FIXTURES
Group A
UAE, Italy, Japan, Spain
Group B
Egypt, Iran, Mexico, Russia
Tuesday
4.15pm: Italy v Japan
5.30pm: Spain v UAE
6.45pm: Egypt v Russia
8pm: Iran v Mexico
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
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Cry Macho
Director: Clint Eastwood
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Dwight Yoakam
Rating:**
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Heavily-sugared soft drinks slip through the tax net
Some popular drinks with high levels of sugar and caffeine have slipped through the fizz drink tax loophole, as they are not carbonated or classed as an energy drink.
Arizona Iced Tea with lemon is one of those beverages, with one 240 millilitre serving offering up 23 grams of sugar - about six teaspoons.
A 680ml can of Arizona Iced Tea costs just Dh6.
Most sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, five teaspoons of sugar in a 500ml bottle.
MEDIEVIL%20(1998)
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Saturday's results
Brighton 1-1 Leicester City
Everton 1-0 Cardiff City
Manchester United 0-0 Crystal Palace
Watford 0-3 Liverpool
West Ham United 0-4 Manchester City
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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Pox that threatens the Middle East's native species
Camelpox
Caused by a virus related to the one that causes human smallpox, camelpox typically causes fever, swelling of lymph nodes and skin lesions in camels aged over three, but the animal usually recovers after a month or so. Younger animals may develop a more acute form that causes internal lesions and diarrhoea, and is often fatal, especially when secondary infections result. It is found across the Middle East as well as in parts of Asia, Africa, Russia and India.
Falconpox
Falconpox can cause a variety of types of lesions, which can affect, for example, the eyelids, feet and the areas above and below the beak. It is a problem among captive falcons and is one of many types of avian pox or avipox diseases that together affect dozens of bird species across the world. Among the other forms are pigeonpox, turkeypox, starlingpox and canarypox. Avipox viruses are spread by mosquitoes and direct bird-to-bird contact.
Houbarapox
Houbarapox is, like falconpox, one of the many forms of avipox diseases. It exists in various forms, with a type that causes skin lesions being least likely to result in death. Other forms cause more severe lesions, including internal lesions, and are more likely to kill the bird, often because secondary infections develop. This summer the CVRL reported an outbreak of pox in houbaras after rains in spring led to an increase in mosquito numbers.
Long Shot
Director: Jonathan Levine
Starring: Charlize Theron, Seth Rogan
Four stars