Di María: Angel deliberately behaves like a devil

Some TV pictures revealed on Saturday that Di María's childish behaviour on the pitch at El Sadar when Ancelotti sent him on to substitute Bale was no accident, nor even the result of a bad half hour, but was in fact the continuation of something that had begun during the warm-up phase.

These pictures first show Paul Clement, the assistant manager, and then Zidane, asking the player to put a bit more energy into his jogging along the touchline, as him joining the game at that point needed an injection of energy, of forcefulness, of enthusiasm. All these qualities Di María can provide when he wants to, but here it turns out that he can't be bothered.

After watching this incident, what happened subsequently on the field of play becomes clearer. Not a single dribble, not one overlap, and no one-on-ones. The Angel had taken on the role of a devil, and the only thing he did was send across three poor and totally inaccurate crosses. Obviously, displaying an attitude like that, he did nothing to help his side, and worse, he hasn't helped himself either. Quite the opposite.

Someone or other is giving Di María bad advice, and I am afrraid that it is not Jorge Mendes, his real agent. The blame is not down to an adviser, if there is one, but to the player himself. If he now wants to leave Real Madrid, then he has chosen the wrong route.

And this when back in August he pledged his utter commitment to both the manager and the club despite the arrival of Bale and a new situation in which he would not be a first-choice player. This positive attitude was a deciding factor in Real Madrid accepting Arsenal's offer for Özil, who wasn't happy with the idea of not being an undisputed starter.

And now, four months on, Di María gets annoyed when he isn't the first choice and seems not to appreciate all the minutes he does get to play. His behaviour has worsened ever since the news leaked out in Argentina of possible interest in him for the January window by Monaco. And ever since, Angel has been playing the devil; he made his claim in the same way as Raúl at the Santiago Bernabéu, and now ends up playing the fool in Pamplona

Renault inks deal with Dongfeng to win access to China growth market

Nine years after first announcing plans for a joint venture, Renault and Chinese state-owned Dongfeng Motors had signed a joint venture agreement, the French carmaker announced Monday.

Renault Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn described the 50-50 partnership as a strategic alliance, as Dongfeng had paramount knowledge of the Chinese market which boasted the biggest growth potential in the world.

'This project is about exploring new frontiers. The challenge is big but we are ready and well-prepared,' he said.

The joint venture gives Renault full access to the Chinese car market from which it has so far been barred because of the lack of a strong local partner. China's Communist government requires all foreign auto makers to team up with a local partner to be allowed to produce cars in the country.

With Dongfeng, Renault would invest 7.76 billion yuan (928 million euros) in a new car factory in Wuhan, Hubei province, expected to start production in 2016, the French carmaker said.

Dongfeng is China's second largest carmaker, with sales of 3.08 million cars in 2012. It already runs joint ventures with Nissan and struggling French carmaker Peugeot. Noting the partnership would help Dongfeng go global, the firm's president Xu Ping expressed the hope of turning the joint venture into a success.

The project has been almost a decade in the making, after a previous Chinese joint venture by Renault failed. In 1993, the French carmaker launched operations with China Space Sanjiang Group to manufacture the Traffic minibus. In 2003, it stopped the production.

EU court strikes down Cisco complaint against Microsoft-Skype merger

On Wednesday, the EU's General Court upheld a decision by European regulators clearing Microsoft's merger with Skype in 2011.

Based in Luxembourg, the EU's second highest court rejected a legal challenge against the merger brought by the US-based network equipment maker Cisco Systems. Cisco argued that Microsoft's acquisition of the Internet telephony and video provider would create a monopoly, and that the EU's executive commission had been wrong to approve the $8.5 billion (6.1 billion euros) takeover.

The EU court ruled that Cisco had failed to show that the acquisition would harm competition, adding: 'The merger doesn't restrict competition either on the consumer video communications market or on the business video communications market.'

The judges also argued that Skype users could switch to other Internet-based video and telephony services if Microsoft were to raise prices in a sector that was rapidly changing.

The litigants are fierce rivals, especially in the market for business video communications. Cisco's TelePresence product is a leader, but has come under pressure from Microsoft's Lync application.

Cisco filed its challenge together with another competitor, Italy's fixed-line and Internet telephone provider Messagenet. The two companies have the chance to appeal the ruling in the European Court of Justice, which is the EU's highest judicial body.

Kelly Brook to sign £1m autobiography deal?

Kelly Brook could sign a deal worth £1 million for her autobiography. 
The glamour model and actress is set to reveal intimate details of her life in the book, including her romances with Hollywood actors Jason Statham and Billy Zane as well as rugby stars Danny Cipriani and Thom Evans.
A source told The Sun newspaper: 'Kelly's book promises to be sensational and she has negotiated an amazing price tag.

'Some speculate it is worth £1million. If she's half as revealing as her photo shoots it should be worth it.
'She's had loads of high-profile romances, worked her socks off to get the breaks and suffered some heartbreaking lows. Her story will appeal to millions of women, while men will salivate over the pictures.'
Kelly, 34, got her first break appearing as co-host on UK TV' 'The Big Breakfast' in 1999, but left after six months on the show. She went on to appear on reality show 'Strictly Come Dancing' in 2007, but pulled out after the death of her father, Kenneth. Further tragedy struck in 2011, when she suffered a miscarriage with then-partner Thom.

Kelly was also hired by Simon Cowell to judge 'Britain's Got Talent' in 2009, but was dropped after just one week on the show. 

Kelly's modelling career has seen her front campaigns for lingerie companies Bravissimo and Ultimo, as well as Foster's Lager and vehicle manufacturer Renault. She has long been a men's magazine favourite, appearing in Playboy as well as topping the UK edition of FHM magazine's 100 Sexiest Women in the World list in 2005.
Kelly's film career has not taken off so spectacularly, but she appeared in over a dozen films including 'Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo', the 2003 version of 'The Italian Job' and 'Piranha 3D'.

No ‘Dhoom’ Without I And Uday”: Abishek Bachan

MUMBAI: Abhisehk Bachan claims that he is the hero of the film and without him Dhoom won’t be there.

Abishek has been part of “Dhoom” franchise since the first part.

He said, “I’m the hero of the film and the movie could not have been made without me and my co-star Uday Chopra.”

While talking to the media the Junior Bachan further added, “Nobody can take that away from me. You can be the biggest or the smallest star but ‘Dhoom’ is about Jai and Ali. It is as simple as that. If the characters of Jai and Ali are not there in ‘Dhoom’, the film won’t be there.”

He also raised the question that why is always antagonist given more importance than the hero of the film?

Ex-servicemen seek Musharraf’s military court trial

Former dictator General (retd) Pervez Musharraf. PHOTO: AFP

LAHORE: 

Some retired officers of the armed forces stepped into the Lahore High Court this week to rescue him from the upcoming trial for high treason.

National Ex-Servicemen Society, a body of retired military men, filed a petition in this regard before the Lahore High Court. Major (r) Moeenuddin Qureshi, the Punjab president of the society and secretary general Major (r) Habibur Rehman Meo filed the petition. Both of them are practicing lawyers.

The petitioners told the court that all the alleged unconstitutional acts of November 3, 2007 were taken by General (r) Pervez Musharraf while he was the chief of army staff.

They said Musharraf should be tried by a military court under Section 31 and Section 59 of Pakistan Army Act for the crime of mutiny and insubordination of the Constitution.

The petitioners said three retired army men had been retaken recently on the army’s rolls for their trial by a military court for alleged corruption in NLC funds. They said as Musharraf had violated Article 6 of the Constitution while in uniform, he should tried by a military court. They asked the court to declare that the three-judge special bench formed by Supreme Court was coram-non-judice, unconstitutional and lacking jurisdiction to hold trial of a person subject to the Army Act. They further urged the court to order the government to refer Musharraf’s case to a military court. Justice Ijazul Ahsan asked the petitioners for more arguments on the maintainability of the petition.

Indian husband of Pakistani woman

The court restrained the federal government from deporting an Indian man married to a Pakistani woman and directed it to file a reply to her petition. Rabia Jahangir said she had married Zafar Riaz in 2005 and they had two children. She said her husband had been living with her in Pakistan on residential permit. She said the government had recently denied him an extension of his visa. She said the Foreigner Registration Officer had ordered her husband on November 29 to leave Pakistan by December 14.

Indian films

The LHC issued notices to the Central Board of Censor and the Pakistan Electronic Media Association (PEMA) on a petition by Pakistan Cinema Owners’ Association and distributors of films to become party in the case against exhibition of Indian movies.

The petitioners assailed the petition filed by a private TV channel host who is seeking a ban on exhibition of Indian films. Counsel for the petitioners said the petition challenging the exhibition of Indian films in Pakistan was illegal and a misrepresentation to obtain an ex-parte order which was directed at stopping the Central Board of Censor from certifying smuggled films only.

Migratory birds

The court sought replies from the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Interior and the Forests Department on a petition seeking measures to protect migratory birds.

The petitioner said millions of Siberian birds migrated to Pakistan due to harsh weather and later returned to their native land in moderate temperatures. The petitioner said that during their stay in Pakistan, the birds were hunted for sport. He said the hunt violated international laws. He asked the court to direct relevant authorities ensure a safe stay and exit for the migratory birds.

Celebrations on former chief justice’s retirement

The Lahore High Court Bar Association celebrated the retirement of the chief justice of Pakistan. Several bar leaders distributed sweets to celebrate what they called “Yaum-e-Najaat” (the day of deliverance). Judicial Activism Panel and the Justice Party, on the other hand, celebrated his day as Iftikhar Day

G-B Assembly: Put the brakes on Pak-China railway track, say lawmakers

Put the brakes on Pak-China railway track, say lawmakers. PHOTO: FILE

GILGIT: 

Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Assembly on Wednesday set aside routine business to debate over the Pak-China railway track project that will pass through the region.

The discussion kicked off after Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) lawmaker Mirza Hussain tabled a motion requesting the speaker to address the issue of the railway track as it entailed the future of G-B.

“The project was signed by the prime minister without consulting any public representative from G-B, not even the chief minister,” said the lawmaker from Nagar Valley while voicing his reservations. “I fear the project, once completed, might deprive local people of whatever little they are earning from the existing Pak-China trade.”

Hussain also raised questions over the constitutional status of the region and called for its settlement before implementing the project.

Chief Minister Mehdi Shah appeared equally upset over the proposed project as he spoke on the floor of the house. “Work on the project should not be started without talking to our representatives,” he said on the third day of the assembly session. “We are not against development, but we need surety in advance that G-B will benefit from it,” he added.

“The region is disputed and such a huge project cannot be initiated without first settling the ambiguous status [of G-B],” maintained the chief minister.

Nationalist leader Nawaz Khan Naji, among other PPP lawmakers, supported Mirza Hussain while Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmakers spoke in favour of the railway project, terming it a vital step for the revival of the economy.

Deputy Speaker Jamil Ahmed, who presided over the proceedings in the absence of speaker Wazir Baig, then formed a four-member committee tasked to draft the reservations. The committee, comprising Mirza Hussain of PML-Q, Janbaz of PML-N, Rahmat Khaliq of JUI-F and Muhammad Ismail, will submit the draft to the CM to be sent to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.