Luis Suarez of Uruguay celebrates after scoring his team's only goal during the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia group A match between Uruguay and Saudi Arabia at Rostov Arena in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on June 20, 2018. Ryan Pierse / Getty Images

Pizzi vows players 'will make Saudi Arabia proud' in World Cup dead-rubber against Egypt



Juan Antonio Pizzi says his Saudi Arabia side will do everything to make the country proud in their final 2018 World Cup match against Egypt next week, after confirming their exit with the narrow defeat to Uruguay on Wednesday.

Beaten 5-0 in the tournament opener by hosts Russia, the Saudis rebounded with a much-improved performance in Rostov-on-Don. Despite losing 1-0 to Luis Suarez's first-half goal, they enjoyed the greater share of the possession against the much-fancied South Americans. Rated 14th in the world, Uruguay sit 53 places higher than Saudi Arabia, who are the tournament's second-lowest ranked side.

Saudi Arabia were outdone only by Suarez’s effort, an easy tap-in once Saudi goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais had flapped at Carlos Sanchez’s corner kick. Yet, even though he rued a lack of a cutting edge in his team – Saudi have had three shots on target in total in Russia – Pizzi was still heartened by the commitment shown.

“The difference between this display and the first game was enormous, the change was obvious,” said the Argentine, who took charge last November, after Saudi had secured a first World Cup berth since 2006. “It gives us tranquility for the future for the months ahead.

“We may not have done enough to get the result we wanted, but we had lots of the ball and we circulated it well. We imposed ourselves on the game. The goal we conceded was unfortunate, but we didn’t have the tools they had.

“This is our weakness. We have good ball possession, but no effectiveness. We lack the depth and skill required to win these games. We have looked for solutions, but haven't quite come up with one yet. But this is one of the reasons great forwards are in high demand and are the elite players in world football. We couldn’t equalise, but we controlled the play. We didn’t suffer.”

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Read more on World Cup 2018:

Richard Jolly: Centurion Suarez strikes for Uruguay to send Saudi Arabia and Egypt out of 2018 World Cup

Continental drift: out of Africa and seemingly out of the World Cup

Analysis: Why Ronaldo and the set-piece experts are rocking World Cup 2018

In pictures: Mohamed Salah's pain and brief joy as Egypt beaten by Russia

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Uruguay manager Oscar Tabarez conceded his side had been outplayed by Saudi Arabia, although he did add that he thought his players had underperformed.

Nevertheless, it will have buoyed the Saudis somewhat before next Monday’s final Group A match against Egypt, who also have no chance of progression.

After the Russia defeat had left him feeling “ashamed”, Pizzi felt the Uruguay display had gone some way to restoring faith in his side.

“We were all united fighting for the same objective, and I think the people of Saudi Arabia will be happy with the spirit we showed,” he said. “Unfortunately we couldn’t play like this in the first game, and we regret that we have no possibility in the last game.

“But we’ll still represent our country, and we’ll make Saudi Arabia proud even though we are out of the tournament.”

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Biography

Favourite Meal: Chicken Caesar salad

Hobbies: Travelling, going to the gym

Inspiration: Father, who was a captain in the UAE army

Favourite read: Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter

Favourite film: The Founder, about the establishment of McDonald's

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UAE SQUAD

 

Goalkeepers: Ali Khaseif, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Adel Al Hosani

Defenders: Bandar Al Ahbabi, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Walid Abbas, Mahmoud Khamis, Mohammed Barghash, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Hassan Al Mahrami, Yousef Jaber, Mohammed Al Attas

Midfielders: Ali Salmeen, Abdullah Ramadan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Majed Hassan, Abdullah Hamad, Khalfan Mubarak, Khalil Al Hammadi, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Harib Abdallah, Mohammed Jumah

Forwards: Fabio De Lima, Caio Canedo, Ali Saleh, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue

Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten

Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a  month before Reaching the Last Mile.

Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

 

Klopp at the Kop

Matches 68; Wins 35; Draws 19; Losses 14; Goals For 133; Goals Against 82

  • Eighth place in Premier League in 2015/16
  • Runners-up in Europa League in 2016
  • Runners-up in League Cup in 2016
  • Fourth place in Premier League in 2016/17
Skewed figures

In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458. 

TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:

- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools

- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say

- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance

- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs

- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills

- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month

- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues

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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.”

How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries

• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.

• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.

• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.

• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.

• For more information visit the library network's website.

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Starring Kangana Ranaut, Richa Chadha, Jassie Gill, Yagya Bhasin, Neena Gupta

Rating: 3.5/5