Arsenal would not have got a penny in compensation from France or Wales if Samir Nasri or Aaron Ramsey had been injured paying for their national teams at the weekend. Yet the London club would have got a tidy insurance payout had Jack Wilshere picked up an injury marshalling England's midfield.
The English Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers, meanwhile, will, according to their chief executive, receive "diddly squat" in compensation for the knee injury sustained by Kevin Doyle, their £6.5 million (Dh38,238m) striker, while playing for the Republic of Ireland on Saturday, which is likely to see him miss the rest of the season as his team fight relegation.
Such are the bizarre vagaries and inconsistencies of injury insurance and compensation in football. No wonder, then, that Europe's top clubs want changes from Fifa, the game's world governing body.
Most national sides do not insure players against injury because, under Fifa's rules, they do not have to. Instead, Fifa makes clubs foot the bill. Not only must clubs release players for national duties, they must insure them against injury and accidents while they are away and continue to cover their wages when players return limping from national matches and training camps.
That is like being obliged to lend your car to a friend and being forced to pay the repairs if he slams it into a wall.
"It's a very abnormal situation," said Michele Centenaro, the general secretary of the European Club Association (ECA) that represents nearly 200 of the continent's leading clubs.
The ECA wants Fifa instead to take out a collective insurance that would pay clubs compensation when players return injured from national duty, helping to cover their wages — which these days are often substantial — while they are sidelined.
Centenaro said such a measure could help thaw the sometimes fraught relations between national teams and the clubs they rely on to lend them players.
"It's not really about money, it's about the principle," he said in a telephone interview. "It would release tensions and relax situations when it comes to calling players and clubs releasing players. We have difficulty to understand how there cannot be an easy solution."
Players are proud to represent their countries. A national call-up is prestigious for players' clubs, too. But it does not seem fair that they solely should have to pay for that honour.
Jean-Michel Aulas, the president of French side Lyon, suggests clubs could dig in their heels against national demands and "no longer accept the release of players systematically" if a solution is not found.
A collective insurance scheme would be "nothing more than logical and normal," Centenaro said more diplomatically.
Another of the current system's flaws is that it is unevenly applied.
England's Football Association (FA) does insure against player injury, but that makes it one of the few. The FA opts to do so "because of our relationship with the clubs; we are borrowing their assets" and because it is lucky enough to be able to afford such coverage, said Alex Horne, the general secretary.
The FA's insurance pays up to £100,000 per week, for up to 100 weeks, to clubs to help cover their wages when players are hurt on England duty, Horne said.
That means that if Aaron Lennon misses games for Tottenham Hotspur, who are heavily committed in the Champions League and Premier League, with the hamstring injury that forced him to withdraw from the England squad, then at least his club should see some money.
France, however, will not compensate Chelsea or Arsenal if Florent Malouda or Nasri got hurt last night against Croatia. Like the English FA, the French federation used to have insurance. But it stopped paying the premiums a few years ago, said Bernard Desumer, the federation treasurer.
Because clubs are supposed to insure their players, even when they are away with the national team, "I said to myself we are wasting money," Desumer said.
The Republic of Ireland are another example of a federation that does not pay.
"Unlike England and Scotland the Republic of Ireland don't offer insurance or compensation for players who get injured," Jez Moxley, the Wolves chief executive, said. "Fifa's guidelines do not require them to do so. The clubs have to take out insurance to protect their players if they want to.
"Kevin [Doyle] has gone away, done his best for his country, and was playing well, setting up the first goal, got injured and we will continue to pay his wages and get no compensation at all for him."
Wales also have no cover so Arsenal were hoping that Ramsey, their young midfielder, emerged unscathed from last night's match for the Welsh Under 21 team against Andorra.
Philip Pritchard, the Wales FA president, said his organisation is not wealthy enough to pay compensation to clubs and could not afford insurance if the rules were changed.
"It would kill a small association like us," he said. "The lifeblood of the small countries would be eliminated."
Both Fifa and Uefa, football's governing body in Europe, point out that clubs do get compensation for releasing their players for the World Cup and European Championships.
In all, those two bodies say they will be sharing a total of US$208 million (Dh763,973m) with clubs from the World Cups of 2010 and 2014 and the Euros of 2008 and 2012. Part of that money is meant to help cover clubs' insurance payments.
One possible alternative, at least for World Cups, might be to put some of the shared-out Fifa payment from 2014 into a collective insurance fund, said Fifa secretary general Jerome Valcke.
His Uefa counterpart, Gianni Infantino, said a collective insurance system is feasible but is "probably quite expensive".
"It's clear that we need to look at all this closely," he said. "It's clear that we need to discuss it."
* Associated Press
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium, Malayisa
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia on October 10
Match info
Manchester United 1 (Van de Beek 80') Crystal Palace 3 (Townsend 7', Zaha pen 74' & 85')
Man of the match Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Selected fixtures
All times UAE
Wednesday
Poland v Portugal 10.45pm
Russia v Sweden 10.45pm
Friday
Belgium v Switzerland 10.45pm
Croatia v England 10.45pm
Saturday
Netherlands v Germany 10.45pm
Rep of Ireland v Denmark 10.45pm
Sunday
Poland v Italy 10.45pm
Monday
Spain v England 10.45pm
Tuesday
France v Germany 10.45pm
Rep of Ireland v Wales 10.45pm
Brief scoreline:
Al Wahda 2
Al Menhali 27', Tagliabue 79'
Al Nassr 3
Hamdallah 41', Giuliano 45 1', 62'
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct to Kolkata from Dh1,504 and Dh1,450 return including taxes, respectively. The flight takes four hours 30 minutes outbound and 5 hours 30 minute returning.
The trains
Numerous trains link Kolkata and Murshidabad but the daily early morning Hazarduari Express (3’ 52”) is the fastest and most convenient; this service also stops in Plassey. The return train departs Murshidabad late afternoon. Though just about feasible as a day trip, staying overnight is recommended.
The hotels
Mursidabad’s hotels are less than modest but Berhampore, 11km south, offers more accommodation and facilities (and the Hazarduari Express also pauses here). Try Hotel The Fame, with an array of rooms from doubles at Rs1,596/Dh90 to a ‘grand presidential suite’ at Rs7,854/Dh443.
Company%20Profile
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
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 biog
Name: Mohammed Imtiaz
From: Gujranwala, Pakistan
Arrived in the UAE: 1976
Favourite clothes to make: Suit
Cost of a hand-made suit: From Dh550
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hoopla%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jacqueline%20Perrottet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20required%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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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
MATCH DETAILS
Chelsea 4
Jorginho (4 pen, 71 pen), Azpilicueta (63), James (74)
Ajax 4
Abraham (2 og), Promes (20). Kepa (35 og), van de Beek (55)
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
THE SPECS
Range Rover Sport Autobiography Dynamic
Engine: 5.0-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: six-speed manual
Power: 518bhp
Torque: 625Nm
Speed: 0-100kmh 5.3 seconds
Price: Dh633,435
On sale: now
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
'Dark Waters'
Directed by: Todd Haynes
Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, William Jackson Harper
Rating: ****
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Revibe%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hamza%20Iraqui%20and%20Abdessamad%20Ben%20Zakour%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Refurbished%20electronics%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunds%20raised%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%2410m%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Resonance%20and%20various%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJune%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohammed%20Alnamara%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMicrofinance%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E16%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFamily%20offices%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%20profile
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