As 2014 winds to a close, let us take a look back at five pivotal moments from the past footballing year.
Godin jumps the highest
It is unlikely you will see the name Diego Godin in many end-of-year best player lists – which is a shame. Few players have had quite a 2014 like Atletico Madrid’s Uruguayan defender.
Last season, Diego Simeone’s team became the first to break the Barcelona-Real Madrid duopoly of the Primera Liga since Rafa Benitez’s Valencia 10 years ago. It was a triumph based on organisation, hard work and indomitable spirit (as well as nifty set pieces). No one epitomised those qualities more than Godin.
Three moments stand out.
His thumping headed equaliser – and what proved to be the title-winning goal – at the Camp Nou on the last day of the Spanish season as Atletico got the point they needed against Barcelona to be champions.
Another header to give his side the lead against Real Madrid in the Champions League final a week later, only for Gareth Bale’s heartbreaking 93rd minute equaliser to deny them glory.
Finally, a carbon copy of his goal against Barcelona to give Uruguay a 1-0 win over Italy at the World Cup, a moment somewhat overshadowed by Luis Suarez’s bite on Giorgio Chiellini.
In 2014, Godin hit more heady heights in a few months than others can only dream off in a long career.
Gerrard takes a tumble
April 27, 2014. Liverpool versus Chelsea.
The script was perfect. A win or draw for the home team and captain Steven Gerrard, enjoying a late-career renaissance, would be within touching distance of leading Liverpool to their first top flight title in England since 1990 and first under the Premier League brand name.
But instead what happened next was, Gerrard tumbled, Demba Ba scored at the Kop end, and Manchester City eventually won the Premier League.
The slip seen around the world has inspired a mini industry of jokes, online memes and terrace chants. But it is not that simple.
Never mind that Liverpool had the second half of the match to save themselves and that there is no reason to assume that Chelsea would not have emerged victorious at Anfield anyway.
Neither is Gerrard the first player whose unfortunate slip has proven so costly – just ask John Terry, whose footing let him down when he missed the penalty that would have won Chelsea the 2008 Uefa Champions League final.
Gerrard deserves better than to shoulder all the blame for Liverpool falling short.
Rightly or wrongly, though, he will have to endure the memory, and the taunts, of that slip for the rest of his career, and probably beyond.
Neuer goes for a walk
It was one of the most virtuoso performances of the 2014 Fifa World Cup.
In the last 16 win against Algeria, German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer performed practically as a sweeper, touching the ball outside the penalty area a remarkable 21 times.
Football hipsters around the world swooned over this seemingly unprecedented originality.
Neuer did not invent the sweeper-keeper role. The legendary Soviet Lev Yashin, Liverpool’s Ray Clemence in the 1970s and, more recently, Ajax and Manchester United’s Edwin van der Sar, among others, all exhibited their own interpretation of goalkeeper as outfield footballer.
Neuer, however, has taken the methodology to new levels. It is a deliberate tactic, not a necessity. The Bayern Munich keeper is an excellent, often unorthodox shot-stopper, but the advanced role – eliminating danger before it is even created – often negates that primary function of the goalkeeper.
Not every keeper has the technique – and certainly few have the confidence – that Neuer possesses in spades.
Yet after his Brazil 2014 heroics, you can expect more and more young goalkeepers to follow in his footsteps. All the way outside the penalty area.
Sydney in the spotlight
A club established only in 2012 comes within seconds of playing Real Madrid in the 2014 Club World Cup semi-finals.
Fairy tales like this are not supposed to happen in modern football. Yet that is exactly what Western Sydney Wanderers achieved last year.
Finishing their first season in the A-League in 2012/13 on top of the table – although they missed being crowned as champions after defeat in the A-League’s play-offs final – was remarkable enough for Tony Popovic’s team, especially as they made the play-off final again in their second year only to lose again.
But the best was still to come in the shape of the 2014 AFC Champions League triumph over Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia. A 1-0 win in Sydney, followed by a 0-0 draw in Riyadh completed a scarcely believable story.
It seems there is still some romance left in football.
Goodbye to Henry
“Ronaldinho is a special player, but Thierry Henry is probably technically the most gifted footballer ever to play the beautiful game,” Zinedine Zidane once said. It was a generous, perhaps hyperbolic, compliment from one great Frenchman to another. Yet it is not too far from the truth.
Watching Henry at his devastating best for Arsenal, it was hard to imagine that a more magical player had existed. The highlights are endless as between 1999 and 2007 he bewitched defences across England and Europe with his pace and poise, before he left the London club for Barcelona.
After a spell in the MLS in the United States with the New York Red Bulls he announced his retirement. He joins a decent squad who also called it a day in 2014: Javier Zanetti, Carlos Puyol, Eric Abidal, Rivaldo, Clarence Seedorf, Juan Sebastian Veron and Ryan Giggs. Football will be poorer for their absence.
akhaled@thenational.ae
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
IF YOU GO
The flights
FlyDubai flies direct from Dubai to Skopje in five hours from Dh1,314 return including taxes. Hourly buses from Skopje to Ohrid take three hours.
The tours
English-speaking guided tours of Ohrid town and the surrounding area are organised by Cultura 365; these cost €90 (Dh386) for a one-day trip including driver and guide and €100 a day (Dh429) for two people.
The hotels
Villa St Sofija in the old town of Ohrid, twin room from $54 (Dh198) a night.
St Naum Monastery, on the lake 30km south of Ohrid town, has updated its pilgrims' quarters into a modern 3-star hotel, with rooms overlooking the monastery courtyard and lake. Double room from $60 (Dh 220) a night.
Europa League group stage draw
Group A: Villarreal, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Astana, Slavia Prague.
Group B: Dynamo Kiev, Young Boys, Partizan Belgrade, Skenderbeu.
Group C: Sporting Braga, Ludogorets, Hoffenheim, Istanbul Basaksehir.
Group D: AC Milan, Austria Vienna , Rijeka, AEK Athens.
Group E: Lyon, Everton, Atalanta, Apollon Limassol.
Group F: FC Copenhagen, Lokomotiv Moscow, Sheriff Tiraspol, FC Zlin.
Group G: Vitoria Plzen, Steaua Bucarest, Hapoel Beer-Sheva, FC Lugano.
Group H: Arsenal, BATE Borisov, Cologne, Red Star Belgrade.
Group I: Salzburg, Marseille, Vitoria Guimaraes, Konyaspor.
Group J: Athletic Bilbao, Hertha Berlin, Zorya Luhansk, Ostersund.
Group K: Lazio, Nice, Zulte Waregem, Vitesse Arnhem.
Group L: Zenit St Petersburg, Real Sociedad, Rosenborg, Vardar
WE%20NO%20LONGER%20PREFER%20MOUNTAINS
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Company%20Profile
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
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.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
