Ruben Amorim has asked his Manchester United players to show they are heading in the right direction in Sunday's high-profile clash with Liverpool.
Liverpool are aiming to halt a three-match losing streak in all competitions when they host a United side that finally might be growing in confidence under manager Ruben Amorim.
Liverpool (5-2-0, 15 points) lost their hold on the early Premier League lead after a 2-1 defeat to Chelsea before the international window.
For a second consecutive league fixture, Arne Slot's Reds conceded a winner in second-half stoppage time, this time to Chelsea's Estevao Willian in the sixth additional minute.
That dropped Liverpool a point behind Arsenal entering the weekend and puts even more focus on one of England's most historic rivalries.
“If you've lost three games in a row and you wear the Liverpool shirt, it doesn't matter who your opponent is, you have to react,” Slot said.
The Red Devils travel to Anfield bidding to close to within two points of their opponents and with a slightly more positive feeling around the club following the victory over Sunderland before the international break.
United have not won at the home of their great rivals for nearly a decade, but they have taken a point from their last two visits, including January's 2-2 draw.
“We played well,” said Amorim, who is yet to oversee back-to-back wins in the league. “I was really upset at the end of the game because we proved that day that we can compete against any opponent.
“I know that it's special for our club, I know they are fighting all the time for the number of titles, I know what it means to the fans. But it's one game that we need to prove again that we are playing better.
“I think we are playing better. We need to do better in both boxes. It's one more game that we need to win.”
Liverpool equalled United's tally of 20 top-flight titles last season, while Amorim's side slumped to a 15th-placed finish.
The Portuguese acknowledged the current power imbalance but is keen to focus on more short-term goals.
“Sometimes things change really fast but, if you see the history of both clubs, you can feel that sometimes you have one club that is winning, winning, winning and the other club is having a bad moment,” he said.
“So we just have to acknowledge that, to be really honest with the fans, but we can win any game. So, if we think about just winning the next game, that is the most important thing, we can win the next game.”
Amorim said the support of co-owner Jim Ratcliffe will mean little if he fails to turn around the club's fortunes.
In an interview with the Times newspaper's The Business podcast, last week, British billionaire Ratcliffe said Amorim has to “demonstrate he is a great coach over three years”.
“You know, I know and Jim knows that football is not like that,” Amorim said.
“The most important thing is the next game.”
They have fared little better this season, sitting 10th in the Premier League after losing three of their first seven league games and crashing to a shock League Cup defeat at fourth-tier Grimsby.
Yet Amorim has so far retained the support of Ratcliffe, CEO Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox.
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W. W. Norton & Company
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Bayern: Rafinha (6'), Muller (12', 27')
Chelsea: Alonso (45' 3), Batshuayi (85')
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A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
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Most memorable achievement: Leading my first city-wide charity campaign in Toronto holds a special place in my heart. It was for Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women program and showed me the power of how communities can come together in the smallest ways to have such wide impact.
Favourite film: Childhood favourite would be Disney’s Jungle Book and classic favourite Gone With The Wind.
Favourite book: To Kill A Mockingbird for a timeless story on justice and courage and Harry Potters for my love of all things magical.
Favourite quote: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” — Winston Churchill
Favourite food: Dim sum
Favourite place to travel to: Anywhere with natural beauty, wildlife and awe-inspiring sunsets.
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McIlroy's recent struggles
Last six stroke-play events (First round score in brackets)
Arnold Palmer Invitational Tied for 4th (74)
The US Masters Tied for 7th (72)
The Players Championship Tied for 35th (73)
US Open Missed the cut (78)
Travellers Championship Tied for 17th (67)
Irish Open Missed the cut (72)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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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.”
MAIN CARD
Bantamweight 56.4kg
Abrorbek Madiminbekov v Mehdi El Jamari
Super heavyweight 94 kg
Adnan Mohammad v Mohammed Ajaraam
Lightweight 60kg
Zakaria Eljamari v Faridoon Alik Zai
Light heavyweight 81.4kg
Mahmood Amin v Taha Marrouni
Light welterweight 64.5kg
Siyovush Gulmamadov v Nouredine Samir
Light heavyweight 81.4kg
Ilyass Habibali v Haroun Baka
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