Monday at Euro 2016 saw the final two qualifiers for the quarter-finals. Here, we have collated some of the best of our content from the last 24 hours in one place. All the latests news, plus group guides, kick-off times and news from around the teams can be found at our special microsite.
1 – Spain: Ordinary defenders, on the pitch and of trophies
The glamour tie of the last 16 took place on Monday evening as traditional heavyweights Italy and Spain, the two-time defending champions, clashed in St Denis for a place in the quarter-finals. Despite an impressive group stage by Italy (yes, they did lose to Republic of Ireland, but top spot was already secured and Antonio Conte had made six changes) and a rather underwhelming one for Spain, it was Spain who entered the match as favourites.
They certainly shouldn’t have. Over the course of 90 minutes, Italy proceeded to dismantle Vicente Del Bosque’s side, and were it not for a string of impressive saves by goalkeeper David De Gea, the scoreline could have been wider than 2-0. Spain have now, in the space of two years, surrendered the World Cup at the group stage and their European title in the Round of 16.
Ian Hawkey's post-match analysis: Spain, undone by Italian urgency, have become ordinary defenders — in matches and of trophies
2 – England embarrassment
English expectations may have been lowered over recent years following a succession of failures at major tournaments, but there was a hint of optimism as the squad boarded the plane to France. Only the most fanciful England fans would have believed in winning Euro 2016, but a young, exciting squad was at the very least expected to reach a stage where they would then be defeated by stronger opposition.
Instead, England qualified second in a very winnable Group B, only to then breathe a sigh of relief for avoiding Portugal in the last 16 and drawing Iceland, the tournament novices hailing from a nation on 330,000.
What unfolded was the latest lowpoint in a series of embarrassing moments for English football, as the team packed with Premier League stars were defeated 2-1 despite taking the early lead.
Richard Jolly provided his analysis from the match in Nice: England, a country and football team in crisis, crash out of Euro 2016 an embarrassment.
3 – The fall guy
Unsurprisingly, Roy Hodgson resigned his post as England manager following the match.
4 – Is ‘Gizou’ the new ‘Zizou’?
The laborious start to the tournament by hosts France had been somewhat personified by their two star players, Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann. While Pogba is still searching for his best form, Griezmann came alive gainst the Republic of Ireland on Sunday night with two goals to lead France into the quarter-finals.
Ian Hawkey profiles the Atletico Madrid striker and explains why Griezmann can be to France at Euro 2016 what Zinedine Zidane was at World Cup '98.
5 – Iceland, Italy deserving
Even if it feels wrong, the right teams won on Monday. English football correspondent Greg Lea gives his take, as well as the day's best player, goal and more.
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Stay with The National for quarter-final previews and more analysis from Euro 2016.
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
SQUADS
UAE
Mohammed Naveed (captain), Mohamed Usman (vice-captain), Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Imran Haider, Tahir Mughal, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed, Fahad Nawaz, Abdul Shakoor, Sultan Ahmed, CP Rizwan
Nepal
Paras Khadka (captain), Gyanendra Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Pradeep Airee, Binod Bhandari, Avinash Bohara, Sundeep Jora, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Rohit Paudel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi, Basant Regmi, Pawan Sarraf, Bhim Sharki, Aarif Sheikh
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 National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
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The biog
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Emirate: Dubai
Hobbies: I enjoy travelling, experiencing new things, painting, reading, flying, and the French language
Favourite quote: "Be the change you wish to see" - unknown
Favourite activity: Connecting with different cultures
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
MWTC
Tickets start from Dh100 for adults and are now on sale at www.ticketmaster.ae and Virgin Megastores across the UAE. Three-day and travel packages are also available at 20 per cent discount.
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
