Al Wahda v Al Shabab, Friday, 7.20pm, AD Sports
ABU DHABI // Hamdan Al Kamali says his Al Wahda side are at full strength for the first time in the season as they prepare to face Al Shabab in the Arabian Gulf Cup final tonight at Al Maktoum Stadium.
“We have suffered from many injuries and suspensions from the beginning of the season, and this game will be the first time that we can call on a full squad,” said the Wahda centre-back.
Read more:
Steve Luckings: Five games to watch this weekend
John McAuley: Al Ahli appeal against being thrown out of Arabian Gulf Cup final rejected
According to Al Kamali, the three-week break from domestic competitions during the national team’s 2018 Asian World Cup qualifying matches has also benefited the players to prepare both technically and physically.
“We hope to give our full power to achieve a positive result in the cup final,” Al Kamali said.
“Our goal was to reach the final, and now we have done that, the next is to please our fans. I am sure they will come in numbers to be behind us.”
One of the driving factors behind the club’s resurgence this season is their coach Javier Aguirre who has made a strong push to promote more youngsters into the Wahda first team, often preferring them in important games to more established players.
“We have one of the youngest squads in the competition this season. This is because our coach doesn’t believe in the names but talent and abilities, and it has worked very well for us,” Al Kamali said.
“The younger players have proved that they are up to the challenge and they can take responsibility, and now our targets remain to finish in the top four in the league and also to try to win the President’s Cup.
“We have been without a trophy for too long now and winning this would be a huge incentive for us. It’s a special tournament for us, especially for the young players, and winning this would give us the momentum to continue doing something special in the coming seasons.”
Al Shabab, who were promoted to the final after the Football Association's Disciplinary Committee threw Al Ahli out after Cosmin Olaroiu's side were found guilty of fielding an ineligible player during their semi-final win over Shabab, have defeated Wahda in both their meetings in the Arabian Gulf League this season, but Essa Mohammed, Shabab's veteran centre-back, said those results count for little now.
“This is a new game and a final, and everything to play for. So the past results don’t matter anymore,” he said.
“Our journey in the cup competition has been better than any other team. We were the first to qualify from the group stage to the semi-finals.
“I believe we deserve to be here. Now we have a chance to win the title and we will give 100 per cent to achieve it.
“Wahda have been having a good season and they have many good players in the calibre of Sebastian Tagliabue and Jorge Valdivia. They have also quality in every line.
“So this game will not be easy of course. We need to be calm and focused in order to win.”
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Fixtures
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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.”
The biog
Name: Sari Al Zubaidi
Occupation: co-founder of Cafe di Rosati
Age: 42
Marital status: single
Favourite drink: drip coffee V60
Favourite destination: Bali, Indonesia
Favourite book: 100 Years of Solitude
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
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MATCH INFO
Manchester City 0
Wolves 2 (Traore 80', 90 4')
Singham Again
Director: Rohit Shetty
Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone
Rating: 3/5
AT%20A%20GLANCE
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