Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Bubble trouble: ‘Dimitri Payet’s public utterances and body language, from summer onwards, have increasingly made it clear he had a roving eye.’ Photograph: Jason Mitchell/IPS/Rex/Shutterstock

Dimitri Payet and Co Cross a Line with Their Striking Self-Indulgence

by Daniel Taylor | Jan 17, 2017 | Sports

There is a passage in one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s latest books that seems deliberately designed to chop West Ham down to size and no doubt, as intended, would have pricked a few egos in the way he does better than anyone. What, Ferguson wanted to know, was “the West...

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Senegal’s Sadio Mané, Egypt’s Mohamed Elneny, Ivory Coast’s Lamine Koné, Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez and Ivory Coast’s Max Gradel will all be starring for their national sides at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations rather than playing in the Premier League. Composite: AFP; Getty Images; Rex/Shutterstock; Action Images via Reuters,

The Premier League’s likely winners and losers from 2017 Africa Cup of Nations

by Paul Doyle | Jan 7, 2017 | Sports

Now is the time for top clubs to prove that to be forewarned really is to be forearmed. Everyone knew that the Africa Cup of Nations was on the agenda for early 2017 and now, with 23 Premier League players among those heading off to Gabon to compete for their...

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During his time as manager of QPR Harry Redknapp claimed not to enjoy the mayhem of the transfer window. Photograph: Adam Davy/PA

Love it or Hate it, the January Transfer Window Provides Unique Excitement

by Barry Glendenning | Jan 5, 2017 | Sports

And so it begins … again. A rolling, meandering soap opera that never really stops started in earnest on Sunday as the new year heralded the opening of the January transfer window. An often tedious month-long orgy of will-they won’t-they drama, whisper and...

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It is funny how it still seems important to go on about Lionel Messi 12 years into his extraordinary sporting life. You’d think by now we might have become glazed by repetition. But not when he keeps doing things like he did against Espanyol. Photograph: Xinhua/REX/Shutterstock

Messi Christmas, the Seasonal Gift from Barcelona with a Dusting of Nutmeg

by Barney Ronay | Dec 28, 2016 | Sports

One of the most remarkable things about Christmas is its basic reach, the layers of ritual and habit, the way this very special time of year manages to smear itself like a basting of goose fat across every one of the vital senses. Overwhelmed by these ruddy-cheeked...

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‘Cristiano Ronaldo: a marvel of the sporting age who turns 32 in two months’ time but remains an acme of preening, twelve-packed athletic perfection.’ Photograph: Matthew Ashton – AMA/Getty Images

Cristiano Ronaldo, Leo Messi, Fresh Air, a Vacuum, Elevator Music, then the Rest

by Barney Ronay | Dec 26, 2016 | Sports

Yes: it’s Him again. For the last few weeks it’s been hard to turn around without bumping into Cristiano Ronaldo, burnished and gleaming, immaculately tuxedoed, proudly fondling his latest gong. Well, here’s another one. As 2016 draws to a close the fifth edition of...