Manchester United took the chance to unveil one French World Cup winner and unleash another. After Raphael Varane was paraded on the pitch, Paul Pogba flourished on it. So did Bruno Fernandes. United started the season with a statement, a flurry and a flourish.
Fernandes scored only their second Premier League hat-trick at Old Trafford since Sir Alex Ferguson retired. Pogba went one better, becoming just the seventh player to register four assists in a game in the division’s 29-year history. “A perfect day,” said Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Leeds United may not concur: thrashed 6-2 by historic foes last December, they lost by four goals again.
This amounted to a declaration, to an ominous display of attacking talent. Solskjaer’s side had scored five goals before they even introduced Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho, the debutant who should add further potency. Marcus Rashford remains injured.
While Mason Greenwood played a supporting role and while Fred added a fifth goal, the double act of Pogba and Fernandes destroyed Leeds. “Those two can produce the big moments because of what’s around them,” said Solskjaer.
The Portuguese had been a talismanic figure in an empty Old Trafford, his United career barely six weeks old when the stands were vacated. He reprised that role to greater applause as, for the first time in 17 months, it was packed. “It creates and sets the mood when you see the fans driving to the stadium,” said Solskjaer. “You get the butterflies again. To have that love from the fans is so important.”
Fernandes had looked a crowd-pleaser when there was no crowd, but a status as a favourite was apparent here. His third goal, rifled into the roof of the net, was the pick. Leeds missed Kalvin Phillips, not yet match fit after his run to the final of Euro 2020, as they could not keep track of Fernandes.
Pogba, meanwhile, wandered around with languid cool, releasing a series of brilliant passes. “Paul has got that vision, he has got that quality,” said Solskjaer. The best may be destined to rank among the finest anyone plays this season: from deep in his own half, travelling 40 yards, rolled and curved into the path of Greenwood, who angled a shot in off the far post.
It restored United’s advantage. Leeds were briefly level, courtesy of another wonderful goal in a game packed full of them, Luke Ayling’s rasping, rising drive. Otherwise, however, they had little to cherish. The good news came earlier in the week when first Bielsa and then Illan Meslier signed new contracts. The goalkeeper was kept busy retrieving the ball from his net.
It creates and sets the mood when you see the fans driving to the stadium. You get the butterflies again
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
The first time came courtesy of a Pogba pass for the on-rushing Fernandes. Meslier almost kept his half-volley out. After Ayling levelled and Greenwood capped a display of fine movement and impudent skill with his goal, Pogba found Fernandes. Goal-line technology proved his effort crossed the line before Ayling’s valiant attempt to keep it out. “Bruno will always score penalties but the timing of his runs was great,” said Solskjaer.
Maybe United’s fourth would have been disallowed last season, when VAR was more interventionist. Victor Lindelof Lindelof is likely to lose his place to Varane but showed a passing range few thought he possessed, unleashing Fernandes, who drilled a shot into the roof of the net. He was not ruled offside.
“The succession of three goals in such a short space of time overcame us,” said Bielsa. “To have lost the way we lost can't be described as just a blip. In general lines they were clearly superior to us.”
That was shown when Pogba then strolled through to set up Fred to sidefoot in a rare goal. “When Fred scores, we know everyone can score,” said Solskjaer. He then took a strange form of pity on Leeds, removing Pogba and replacing him with Sancho. It was a substitution that, in itself, should constitute a warning to the rest of the division.
Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
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What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
The biog
Full name: Aisha Abdulqader Saeed
Age: 34
Emirate: Dubai
Favourite quote: "No one has ever become poor by giving"
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group B
Tottenham Hotspur 1 (Eriksen 80')
Inter Milan 0
Defending champions
World Series: South Africa
Women’s World Series: Australia
Gulf Men’s League: Dubai Exiles
Gulf Men’s Social: Mediclinic Barrelhouse Warriors
Gulf Vets: Jebel Ali Dragons Veterans
Gulf Women: Dubai Sports City Eagles
Gulf Under 19: British School Al Khubairat
Gulf Under 19 Girls: Dubai Exiles
UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
International Invitational: Speranza 22
International Vets: Joining Jack
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US' most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was first created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out projectiles, namely ballistic missiles, as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles both inside and outside of the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 93 miles above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then deployed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
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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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info
What: Fifa Club World Cup play-off
Who: Al Ain v Team Wellington
Where: Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
When: Wednesday, kick off 7.30pm
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
