Lionel Messi scored a brace to help seal a comprehensive 3-0 friendly win for Argentina over Honduras in Miami on Friday to extend their impressive unbeaten run ahead of the Qatar World Cup.
The Argentina captain scored a goal in each half, his opener doubling the lead given to Lionel Scaloni's team by Lautaro Martinez early on.
Argentina haven't lost in 34 matches heading into Tuesday's game against Jamaica in New York.
With their last defeat coming in the 2019 Copa America semi-final, the thousands of Argentina fans who packed Hard Rock Stadium in a crowd of 64,420 left delighted as a combative Honduran side were put to the sword.
"The game was what we expected," Argentina coach Scaloni said. "I am satisfied with that.
"As far as players who didn't play, as a coach I have to manage minutes and rest some players. Most important thing is that whoever plays proves they can belong and can play."
Messi was at the centre of the action from the opening whistle, lobbing a pass to the charging Papu Gomez who found Lautaro Martinez for an early lead.
The 35-year-old was on the receiving end of a hard foul in the 39th minute when Deybi Flores of Honduras slammed into him, sending him face down onto the turf and drawing a yellow card.
Messi's team mates immediately got in the faces of the Honduras players and the teams exchanged words but stopped short of trading blows. The Argentina captain remained in the game.
Near the end of the half, Marcelo Santos fouled Argentina's Giovani Lo Celso and Messi slotted home the penalty for a 2-0 advantage.
Enzo Fernandez stole the ball in the 69th minute and it fell perfectly to Messi, who chipped it over the goalkeeper's head.
Determined to continue putting on a show for his fans, Messi tried a difficult leaping shot in the waning minutes of the match but missed the target.
Two-time world champions Argentina are among the favourites to win it all in Qatar and play their first group stage match against Saudi Arabia on November 22.
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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.
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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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