Hull City manager Steve Bruce insists he won’t let his players be distracted by the prospect of making history as they prepare to face League One minnows Sheffield United in the FA Cup semi-finals on Sunday.
Bruce’s Premier League team head to Wembley for their first semi-final in 84 years as the clear favourites against third tier opponents who are the last remaining obstacle between Hull and the first major final in the club’s 110-year history.
On paper, Hull should have few problems dispatching Nigel Clough’s team to set up a final showdown with Arsenal or Wigan, who meet in the other semi-final on Saturday.
United are 44 places below Hull in the league structure and no team from outside the top two divisions has reached the FA Cup final in more than a century.
But Bruce, whose first managerial job was with United in 1998, is determined to guard against complacency and, in a bid to keep his players in businesslike mood, he was quick to play down the historic sub-plot.
Former Manchester United defender Bruce, a three-time FA Cup winner as a player, said: “We won’t do anything different. We want it to be like a normal game.
“We don’t want to give them any excuses. We had Thursday off, we are in Friday and Saturday and let’s hope preparation is the same as usual.
“I know the team, but the players don’t. I’ll tell the players the team on Saturday.
“You know when there is a big game and we had to put the reins on them at the training ground, which is great to see. They were flying around.”
Hull owner Assem Allam suffered a frustrating defeat at Wembley in midweek when his controversial application to change the club’s name to Hull Tigers was rejected by the Football Association.
But the Egyptian will be back at the English national stadium with Europe in his sights.
Should Arsenal get the better of Wigan, either Hull or United will qualify for next season’s Europa League if Arsenal hold onto fourth spot in the Premier League and qualify for the Champions League.
“Hull playing in Europe would be terrific. We’ll all go on EasyJet,” Bruce said.
“It would be quite remarkable but we’ve got to get to the final first.”
Meanwhile, boss Clough admits he isn’t offended by his side’s underdog tag.
Clough, whose father Brian failed to win the Cup during his legendary managerial career, has masterminded victories over Premier League sides Aston Villa and Fulham during United’s run to the last four.
But United, the first League One team to reach this stage of the competition since 2001, have a miserable record at Wembley and Clough is realistic about his unheralded team’s hopes of springing another surprise.
“Our chances are slim because we’re playing a team two divisions above us,” he said.
“It is so many years since a League One team got to this stage. And I don’t think one has got to the final so that’s why Hull are huge favourites.
“Hull will be the sternest test. I would have said that even if it had been the round before.”
Just reaching semi-finals is a huge achievement for United – four-time FA Cup winners and founder members of the Premier League who have fallen on hard times in the last two decades.
Former Liverpool and England striker Clough will relish the day whatever the result, especially since his latest clash with Bruce won’t result in bruises for once.
The pair were regular combatants during their playing days in the top-flight and Clough said: “We had some real battles. There was one of us doing the kicking – and guess who that was.
“I played against Steve for a good few years and he was uncompromising to say the least.
“I didn’t lose my cool because I was in too much pain lying on the ground.”
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Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
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Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
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7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
7 — Lewis Hamilton (2008, ’14,’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20)
5 — Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57)
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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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Captain Marvel
Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Starring: Brie Larson, Samuel L Jackson, Jude Law, Ben Mendelsohn
4/5 stars
