Bruno Fernandes stars as Portugal beat Uruguay to reach World Cup knockout phase

Bruno Fernandes scored both goals as Portugal booked their place in the World Cup knockout phase with a 2-0 victory over Uruguay at Lusail Stadium.

It initially looked as though Cristiano Ronaldo had drawn level with Portugal’s record World Cup goalscorer Eusebio when he rose to try ro head in Fernandes’ 54th-minute cross.

But replays showed that the Portugal captain, who has scored eight World Cup goals, did not get a touch on it and the goal was given to Fernandes as his team claimed a second successive Group H win.

Fernandes’s goal, followed by a penalty in added time, proved enough to turn a tight and tense contest Portugal’s way and put them in pole position to top their group ahead of facing South Korea on Friday.

Uruguay, meanwhile, will need to beat Ghana in their quest for a place in the Round of 16.

Portugal made three changes from the side that beat opening opponents Ghana, with Nuno Mendes, Pepe and William Carvalho all handed starts.

Luis Suarez, meanwhile, was among the substitutes for Uruguay, with Edinson Cavani called into a starting XI that also saw roles for Guillermo Varela and Sebastian Coates.

Uruguay’s Rodrigo Bentancur collected a yellow card after just six minutes after a foul on Ruben Dias, and Portugal dominated the early exchanges.

Portugal 3 Ghana 2 - in pictures

Fernandes drifted a shot wide, then Ronaldo saw a free-kick deflected for a corner, but Uruguay should have gone ahead 12 minutes before half-time.

Bentancur tormented Portugal’s defence after breaking clear from just inside his own half, but just when it looked as though he had done all the hard work with only Diogo Costa to beat, he shot straight at the goalkeeper.

Mathias Olivera became the second Uruguay player to be booked, while Portugal’s Ruben Neves was also cautioned during an opening 45 minutes that finished 0-0.

But there was also a major blow for Portugal as Mendes was forced off injured, leaving the field in tears and being replaced by Raphael Guerreiro just before half-time.

Olivera was fortunate to avoid a second yellow card following a reckless foul, and Wolves captain Neves needed treatment after a challenge by Uruguay’s Matias Vecino.

The deadlock was broken nine minutes into the second period when Fernandes’s cross eluded Ronaldo and Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet.

It was no less than Portugal deserved, and they confirmed all three points when Fernandes sent Rochet the wrong way from the penalty spot after a controversial hand ball was awarded against Jose Maria Gimenez after a VAR review.

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Five hymns the crowds can join in

Papal Mass will begin at 10.30am at the Zayed Sports City Stadium on Tuesday

Some 17 hymns will be sung by a 120-strong UAE choir

Five hymns will be rehearsed with crowds on Tuesday morning before the Pope arrives at stadium

‘Christ be our Light’ as the entrance song

‘All that I am’ for the offertory or during the symbolic offering of gifts at the altar

‘Make me a Channel of your Peace’ and ‘Soul of my Saviour’ for the communion

‘Tell out my Soul’ as the final hymn after the blessings from the Pope

The choir will also sing the hymn ‘Legions of Heaven’ in Arabic as ‘Assakiroo Sama’

There are 15 Arabic speakers from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan in the choir that comprises residents from the Philippines, India, France, Italy, America, Netherlands, Armenia and Indonesia

The choir will be accompanied by a brass ensemble and an organ

They will practice for the first time at the stadium on the eve of the public mass on Monday evening

Keane on …

Liverpool’s Uefa Champions League bid: “They’re great. With the attacking force they have, for me, they’re certainly one of the favourites. You look at the teams left in it - they’re capable of scoring against anybody at any given time. Defensively they’ve been good, so I don’t see any reason why they couldn’t go on and win it.”

Mohamed Salah’s debut campaign at Anfield: “Unbelievable. He’s been phenomenal. You can name the front three, but for him on a personal level, he’s been unreal. He’s been great to watch and hopefully he can continue now until the end of the season - which I’m sure he will, because he’s been in fine form. He’s been incredible this season.”

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s instant impact at former club LA Galaxy: “Brilliant. It’s been a great start for him and for the club. They were crying out for another big name there. They were lacking that, for the prestige of LA Galaxy. And now they have one of the finest stars. I hope they can go win something this year.”

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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If you go

The flights
There are various ways of getting to the southern Serengeti in Tanzania from the UAE. The exact route and airstrip depends on your overall trip itinerary and which camp you’re staying at.
Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Kilimanjaro International Airport from Dh1,350 return, including taxes; this can be followed by a short flight from Kilimanjaro to the Serengeti with Coastal Aviation from about US$700 (Dh2,500) return, including taxes. Kenya Airways, Emirates and Etihad offer flights via Nairobi or Dar es Salaam.