Belgium face Argentina in Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final buoyed by support from Kenya, the country of birth of striker Divock Origi’s father.
“We are very proud as a family, he has gone a notch higher than all of us,” Origi’s uncle Austin Oduor, a Kenyan civil servant and former captain of the Kenyan national team, told AFP.
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“He has proved his credentials as a player, not just in scoring, but has shown he is able to play a big role in the team,” Odour added.
Teenager Origi scored the only goal after coming on as a substitute in Belgium’s first round win over Russia to fire Belgium into the last 16.
They went on to beat the United States 2-1 to set up Saturday’s quarter-final with Argentina.
Against the USA, the 19-year-old Origi had been brought into the side at Romelu Lukaku’s expense after impressing as a substitute in all three of Belgium’s Group H wins and he was denied within the opening minute by Howard’s outstretched leg after racing onto Kevin de Bruyne’s through ball.
“He has propelled Belgium to do well to reach the quarter-finals. He has proved to be an asset and has become an important part to Belgium’s progress,” said Oduor.
Many in Kenya might otherwise have cheered for Argentina, popular here for iconic players like Diego Maradona.
But the Kenyan connection has boosted support for the Belgian team. Origi was himself once possibly touted for a call-up into the Kenyan national team, the Harambee Stars.
He is the son of Mike Okoth, who played for Kenya between 1989 and 2003. Two uncles have played for Kenyan champions Tusker.
Oduor was also a member of the Gor Mahia team which won the now-defunct African Cup Winners Cup in 1987.
“He is being celebrated as the first player of Kenyan origin of to score at a World Cup,” Kenya’s Daily Nation wrote this week, praising his ability to “poach from inside, strike the ball from afar and is a willing runner.”
His uncle – whose son Arnold Origi is goalkeeper for Norway topflight club Lillestrom – believes the youngster made a wise decision to play for Belgium instead of Kenya.
“The atmosphere he’s operating in is conducive for him, he wouldn’t have found it anywhere else,” Odour added.
“The Belgium team has given him space to operate and he has exploited it to the full.
“As such he has even silenced his critics who were thinking he would only sit on the bench during the World Cup. There is a lot at stake for him.”
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
THE BIO
Favourite car: Koenigsegg Agera RS or Renault Trezor concept car.
Favourite book: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes or Red Notice by Bill Browder.
Biggest inspiration: My husband Nik. He really got me through a lot with his positivity.
Favourite holiday destination: Being at home in Australia, as I travel all over the world for work. It’s great to just hang out with my husband and family.
'Spies in Disguise'
Director: Nick Bruno and Troy Quane
Stars: Will Smith, Tom Holland, Karen Gillan and Roshida Jones
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
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.”
Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
