Alex Ferguson has backed Louis van Gaal’s decision to overhaul Manchester United’s struggling squad with a major spending spree.
Van Gaal was hired to clean up the mess left by David Moyes, whose brief reign as Ferguson’s successor at Old Trafford ended with the club at their lowest ebb for two decades.
United responded by hiring Van Gaal and handing the Dutch coach significant funds to breathe new life into the team.
Van Gaal splashed out over £150 million (Dh885.4m) on Angel di Maria, who cost a club record £59m, Radamel Falcao, Ander Herrera, Marcos Rojo and Luke Shaw.
The new signings have helped United into the Premier League’s top four already despite some indifferent performances, and Ferguson, who retired after winning the title in 2013, is in no doubt that fresh faces were needed.
Referring to the capture of Di Maria from Real Madrid, he told MUTV: “When you can identify ability like that for Manchester United, they have the resources to do that – fees I never quite equalled but they needed a big injection this year.”
On the other signings he added: “Herrera played against us three years ago for Bilbao, he’s a talented young player and we scouted him quite a lot. He’s quite aggressive for a lad who’s not got a great frame.
“I watched Rojo at the World Cup and thought he did well. He’s capable of playing left side or centre back.
“Luke Shaw we tried to get when he was 16. They (Southampton) wouldn’t sell him but they always said we’d be the first to know if they did. He’s a talented boy, good footballer and likes to get forward.
“Daley Blind is a common-sense footballer, a version of Darren Fletcher a few years ago. And Falcao is the one we’re all waiting to see, he’s got fantastic goalscoring ability.”
Despite the big-money arrivals, Ferguson is pleased that Van Gaal has decided to use the club’s academy as well, with youngsters Paddy McNair and Tyler Blackett both featuring in defence this season.
“The rebuilding of the team, they’ve brought in some good quality which is really important because you need quality at Manchester United, you need the best players,” Ferguson added.
“What’s pleased me about Louis is he’s given about seven of the young kids their debuts, which falls into line with the history of the club. I think the supporters will respond well when a young player gets his opportunity.”
Ferguson was often pictured in the stands last season as Moyes – the man hand-picked by the legendary former United coach to replace him – struggled to get the team performing.
There was never anything to suggest Ferguson was influencing Moyes and he is adamant he has nothing to do with Van Gaal when it comes to first-team affairs.
“There’s no ongoing dialogue. He comes into my office sometimes after a game, we have a chat, it’s not a matter of picking up the phone to him as he’s a very capable person, a strong leader.
“He knows what I’m about but there’s no need for him to phone me,” he said.
Ferguson remains a United ambassador and director, as well as filling a number of other roles.
He also continues to work with Uefa and the League Managers’ Association, but says fewer managers are now calling him for advice, as was often the way in the past.
“One or two do, not many. I think they probably think I’m dead,” he joked.
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Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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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.”
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How it works
1) The liquid nanoclay is a mixture of water and clay that aims to convert desert land to fertile ground
2) Instead of water draining straight through the sand, it apparently helps the soil retain water
3) One application is said to last five years
4) The cost of treatment per hectare (2.4 acres) of desert varies from $7,000 to $10,000 per hectare
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