Wahbi Khazri’s superb solo goal secured Tunisia a famous victory against reigning champions France but Australia’s shock win against Denmark meant they still made a heart-breaking World Cup exit.
Didier Deschamps made sweeping alterations for the Group D finale at Education City Stadium after Les Bleus became the first side to seal their place in the round of 16.
France still had the quality to win but ex-Sunderland man Khazri’s moment of magic secured Tunisia a 1-0 victory – their first World Cup win against European opponents after 11 previous attempts.
Wednesday’s result will live long in the memory but Mathew Leckie’s strike 14 miles away proved a knockout blow for Jalel Kadri’s side as Australia progressed instead.
Antoine Griezmann looked to have landed another gut punch when equalising deep in stoppage time, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside after the VAR’s intervention.
Tunisia’s superb fans showed their appreciation to their players at full-time in Al Rayyan, where France topped Group D despite Wednesday’s shock loss.
The North African side came into this match in hope more than expectation, but just eight minutes in they began to believe.
Nader Ghandri excellently turned in a free-kick that would be ruled out for offside, yet that moment appeared to give Tunisia and their fans hope.
France had quality on the pitch but struggled to click, with Kingsley Coman missing the target at the end of one of their rare moves of fluidity.
Tunisia continued to look the bigger threat, with Anis Slimane seeing a blocked header easily saved before Steve Mandanda unconvincingly dealt with a Khazri effort.
The 31-year-old was looking most likely to open the scoring and went down in the box just minutes into the second half following a challenge by Aurelien Tchouameni.
Nothing was given as Tunisia continued to push, with Aissa Laidouni rifling over from an acute angle before getting the assist for a 58th-minute goal that was all of Khazri’s making.
The skipper span as he collected the ball just under 50 yards from the French goal and drove forwards at pace.
Denmark 0 Tunisia 0 - in pictures
First he brushed off the attention of Youssouf Fofana, before rounding Raphael Varane and getting away a low effort before Axel Disasi could tackle him, sending the ball rolling into the bottom corner.
It was an incredible moment and Khazri’s last action of the evening as he was immediately replaced.
The volume inside the ground soon dropped as Tunisian fans heard Australia had taken the lead, then saw star Kylian Mbappe introduced from the bench.
Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele soon followed him on, with the latter seeing an attempt from distance saved by Aymen Dahmen.
Substitute Adrien Rabiot’s volleyed effort went wide and Mbappe tried his luck from a tight angle, before Randal Kolo Muani saw a strike whistle narrowly wide.
Tunisia’s substitutes huddled around a phone in stoppage time hoping for positive news from the Australia v Denmark match, but there was no late drama in that game.
There was in Al Rayyan, though. Griezmann met a loose ball with a volley that deflected in cruelly as France looked to have secured a late draw.
The final whistle went, only for the VAR to advise a pitchside review and offside was given.
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'Midnights'
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The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
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.”
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
How to report a beggar
Abu Dhabi – Call 999 or 8002626 (Aman Service)
Dubai – Call 800243
Sharjah – Call 065632222
Ras Al Khaimah - Call 072053372
Ajman – Call 067401616
Umm Al Quwain – Call 999
Fujairah - Call 092051100 or 092224411
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
