World Cup 2018: What we learned from day 25: Mbappe or Hazard can fill Ronaldo’s shoes, set pieces are crucial and Deschamps solves tactical puzzle July 10, 2018 It’s very typical of Cristiano Ronaldo to upstage others in the footballing arena. Although he didn’t manage to steal the thunder of a World Cup semi-final tonight, his move from Real Madrid to Juventus did offer an interesting sub-plot to the events in St Petersburg. Ronaldo’s departure offered up an obvious question: what next for [...]
World Cup 2018: Four signs you remember England’s 1990 semi-final July 10, 2018 1. Nessun Dorma gives you goosebumps If there is a more evocative, spine-tingling opening credit sequence than the BBC’s Italia 90 montage of iconic World Cup moments soundtracked by Nessun Dorma then it should come with a health warning. Juxtaposing the stirring tones of Luciano Pavarotti belting out Puccini’s composition with slo-mo footage of football’s [...]
World Cup 2018: England are laying their ghosts – from penalty shoot-outs to bogey teams – to rest one by one in Russia July 8, 2018 Gareth Southgate is certainly no Ebenezer Scrooge and this endless summer could not be further removed from the wintry backdrop of A Christmas Carol, but there is something of Charles Dickens’ redemptive tale about England’s voyage into the last four of the World Cup. Just as Scrooge is transformed by visits from three ghosts, this [...]
Donald Trump’s July 2018 UK visit: Yes, he’s going to meet the Queen, eat at Blenheim Palace, check out Chequers and visit Scotland July 6, 2018 Practice your golf swing and dust off your giant angry baby balloon: Donald Trump is coming to town. The US President is arriving on Thursday afternoon (12 July), but instead of coming to London for one of the many protests in his honour, Trump and First Lady Melania will travel to Winston Churchill's birthplace Blenheim [...]
Last Week in the City: Trade wars begin July 6, 2018 Garry White, chief investment commentator, looks at the market-moving events that have shaped the UK equity markets this week (2 to 6 July 2018). The World Cup is “distracting” for participants in global markets, according to Citigroup. "We find that football is indeed distracting, subtly impacting market depth, traded volumes and execution cost,” the US [...]
DEBATE: Forget the Brexit dividend, should we pin our economic hopes on an England World Cup victory? July 6, 2018 Forget the Brexit dividend, should we pin our economic hopes on an England World Cup victory? Alastair Benn, news editor of Reaction, says YES. When Eric Dier swept home that penalty against Colombia, the whole pub erupted in joy. And I fell into a strange reverie. It seemed as if the dull present had been [...]
World Cup 2018: Are Sweden, England’s quarter-final opponents, another Iceland? July 5, 2018 On Saturday England’s burgeoning hopes of long-awaited international success hinge on seeing off unfancied Scandinavian opponents who are widely seen as game but ultimately inferior. Sound familiar? Two years ago it was Iceland who knocked England off their pedestal with a 2-1 victory in Nice. It proved the pinnacle of a run to the quarter-finals [...]
What’s the difference between emerging and frontier markets? July 5, 2018 Here’s the thing about labels: They always tell you more about the people who apply them than what they are applied to. Take “emerging market.” It is one of the few terms that applies to both India and China. These are not similar places. Business travellers from one have been known to check bags full [...]
A land of conquest, casinos and copious wine, Georgia is perhaps Europe’s most surprising destination July 5, 2018 It has been said that Georgians ‘think with European minds and feel with Asian hearts’. Their nation, clamped between Russia and Turkey, is neither fully European nor Asian but rather in a category all of its own. If one symbol encapsulates the Georgian psyche it is the Kartlis Deda “Mother of Georgia” statue, which towers [...]
Trevor Steven: England have tremendous World Cup chance and Three Lions can still get better July 4, 2018 There’s no question that Tuesday’s penalty shoot-out win against Colombia has presented the best opportunity that England have had since 1990 – or will have for a very long time – to reach a World Cup final. It’s a tremendous chance. Traditional heavyweights Germany, Argentina and Spain were sent packing early in Russia, while Italy [...]