Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says he has no concerns about how Daniel Sturridge will fit into his redefined formation ahead of the striker’s long-awaited comeback from injury.
Sturridge will be in Liverpool’s squad for their Premier League clash against West Ham at Anfield on Saturday having not played for the Reds since the end of August with calf and thigh problems.
Rodgers reverted to a fluid 3-4-3 system during a lean spell of results in Sturridge’s absence and Liverpool saw a marked improvement.
The formation change has rarely used a traditional striker, with Raheem Sterling occupying a central role while Rickie Lambert, Mario Balotelli and Fabio Borini have often been named among the substitutes.
However, Rodgers has no reservations about Sturridge’s ability to adapt to the way Liverpool now play.
RELATED:
— Costa to discover fate over ‘stamp’ on Liverpool’s Emre Can
— West Ham to hold Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City draw: EPL predictions
“Daniel will bring something really creative and quality to the team,” Rodgers said.
“Then it’s a case of managing in behind that. The system does not have to change. It’s there and the players are there if we have to do it.
“We are very much built around the collective, but it doesn’t half help when you have someone to finish it off at the top end of the field and have that power and pace that Daniel has.
“In the last few days he was brilliant. He’s been really dynamic, fast, strong in the finish and sharp. But we have to be careful with him as well.”
Rodgers also claimed that had England international Sturridge been available for most of the campaign Liverpool would currently be in the Champions League places, as opposed to being in the chasing pack challenging for a top four spot.
“No question,” Rodgers added. “I think it’s had a huge impact on our season.
“He hasn’t played and the team struggled for a few months, but thankfully we’ve now nailed down a way of working and returned to our football ideals.
“The team is becoming better and better, and when you throw Daniel into that, he shines a different light and adds another dimension.”
Liverpool will check on the fitness of centre-back Mamadou Sakho, who injured his back in the League Cup semi-final defeat to Chelsea, while right-back Jon Flanagan (knee) and reserve goalkeeper Brad Jones (hip) remain out.
West Ham have not won at Anfield since 1963 but enjoyed a 3-1 success against Rodgers’ side at Upton Park earlier in the season.
Hammers manager Sam Allardyce believes Liverpool will be much tougher prospect with Sturridge available.
“Liverpool are in the best form of the season at the moment,” he said.
“The way they are now playing is up there with the level they were at last season.
“They obviously didn’t have the massive goal threat that they had last year with Luis Suarez gone and Sturridge injured.
“It sounds like there is a good chance Sturridge will feature against us whether off the bench or not.
“We’ll give it our best shot and hopefully we’ll get a result. We beat Liverpool earlier in the season — that was a major shock at the time.”
Two goals in the first seven minutes helped West Ham to that September success, but they will go into the rematch having won just one of their last five Premier League outings.
“That win was a while ago now, the challenge now is to get a result away from home,” Allardyce added.
“Getting results away at the big boys is a key challenge for ourselves. We need to rise to the challenge.
“Doing the double over one of the best teams doesn’t happen very often in life but it is a possibility.
“We’ll have to be in top form and every player at 100 per cent and then take the opportunities we do get.”
Follow us on Twitter @NatSportUAE
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Developer: Treyarch, Raven Software
Publisher: Activision
Console: PlayStation 4 & 5, Windows, Xbox One & Series X/S
Rating: 3.5/5
Top 10 in the F1 drivers' standings
1. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 202 points
2. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-GP 188
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-GP 169
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing 117
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 116
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing 67
7. Sergio Perez, Force India 56
8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 45
9. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 35
10. Nico Hulkenberg, Renault 26
UK%20record%20temperature
%3Cp%3E38.7C%20(101.7F)%20set%20in%20Cambridge%20in%202019%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sleep Well Beast
The National
4AD
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
What is the FNC?
The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning.
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval.
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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.”
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
