Just three months into his second managerial job and Wayne Rooney did not mince his words as DC United’s MLS campaign reached its miserable conclusion.
The American club’s final match was befitting of the season as a whole as Rooney’s side were thrashed 5-2 at home by FC Cincinnati.
The Black-and-Reds finished bottom of the 14-team Eastern Conference, a distant seven points behind Toronto in 13th place, missing out on a play-off spot for a third season in a row.
“Thank God the season’s over,” said former England captain Rooney, who was DC’s third coach of a disastrous season after Hernan Losada and interim manager Chad Ashton. “I think it’s a relief for all of us.
“The goals we conceded – incredible, really. Not just at the professional level – at any level.”
It was a sentiment echoed by captain Steven Birnbaum after their latest capitulation at Audi Field on Sunday. “We need a restart,” said Birnbaum. “It wasn’t good enough today. It hasn’t been good enough all year. Pretty much par for the course.”
There were eyebrows raised back in Rooney’s home country when he was appointed manager at the American club he served with distinction as a player.
Rooney played 52 games for DC United scoring 25 goals in 2018-19, captaining the team to the play-offs two seasons in a row.
Manchester United and England’s record goalscorer had just finished a manic stint as manager of Derby County that ended with the club being relegated to the league's third tier.
But Rooney emerged from that spell with his coaching reputation strengthened rather than tarnished. Derby had been a club in turmoil for most of his 18 months in charge at Pride Park.
In his first full season in the role, the Rams were hit with a 12-point deduction for entering administration and then a nine-point penalty for breaching league accounting rules.
Had it not been for those deductions, Derby would have finished 17th in the Championship. As it was, they finished second bottom, eight points shy of safety. Rooney decided the time was right for him to leave and allow the Midlands club to inject some “fresh energy” ahead of the new League One season.
Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard – two of Rooney’s contemporaries in England's so-called "Golden Generation" of players – had jobs with established Premier League clubs, at Everton and Aston Villa, respectively.
But instead of waiting for an English top-flight role to materialise, Rooney was heading back to the US capital. “I've seen a few articles, certainly back in England, on this being a possible backward step in my managerial career,” said the 36-year-old after his appointment in July. “I really find that a bit disrespectful to this league.”
It was clearly going to be a mighty challenge, though. DC were second bottom and had been without a permanent manager since Losada’s exit in April.
Rooney’s first game in the dugout would be a winning one when two goals deep into injury-time from Chris Durkin and Taxi Fountas secured a 2-1 victory over Orlando City.
“The season has to start now,” said Rooney, who had been limited to a consulting role for three weeks while his work visa was finalised. “You lose so many games, you forget what it’s like to win,” added defender Brendan Hines-Ike.
Sadly for Rooney and Co, it would be an all too rare feeling. After that Orlando victory on August 1, United would win just one more game. Despite the likes of Ravel Morrison and Christian Benteke arriving from English football to bolster the squad, the rot had already firmly set in.
And the season would hit a new low in September when key forward Fountas was accused of using a racial slur during DC’s defeat against Inter Miami – a team co-owned by David Beckham and coached by Phil Neville, both former teammates of Rooney.
“A word was used that I think is unacceptable in society,” Neville said after the game. Fountas strongly denied the claims but has not played since despite being eligible.
DC would finish with 27 points, the lowest total out of the entire MLS (Eastern and Western Conference), having secured the fewest victories (seven), scored the fewest goals (36) and conceded the most (71).
“If we’re going to compete, if we’re going to be successful, there will have to be big changes and quite a few of them,” Rooney said.
“It’s my job to push the owners and if we want to be successful, if we want to develop as a team and a club, we have to make sure we make the right decisions. It’s going to be a lot of work, but it needs it.”
HIJRA
Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy
Director: Shahad Ameen
Rating: 3/5
Profile of Hala Insurance
Date Started: September 2018
Founders: Walid and Karim Dib
Based: Abu Dhabi
Employees: Nine
Amount raised: $1.2 million
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers
AL%20BOOM
%3Cp%20style%3D%22text-align%3Ajustify%3B%22%3E%26nbsp%3B%26nbsp%3B%26nbsp%3BDirector%3AAssad%20Al%20Waslati%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%20style%3D%22text-align%3Ajustify%3B%22%3E%0DStarring%3A%20Omar%20Al%20Mulla%2C%20Badr%20Hakami%20and%20Rehab%20Al%20Attar%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EStreaming%20on%3A%20ADtv%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203.5%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Results:
6.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 2,000m - Winner: Powderhouse, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
7.05pm: Handicap Dh165,000 2,200m - Winner: Heraldic, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Conditions Dh240,000 1,600m - Winner: Walking Thunder, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
8.15pm: Handicap Dh190,000 2,000m - Winner: Key Bid, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
8.50pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed Dh265,000 1,200m - Winner: Drafted, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
9.25pm: Handicap Dh170,000 1,600m - Winner: Cachao, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
10pm: Handicap Dh190,000 1,400m - Winner: Rodaini, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
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.”
Sweet%20Tooth
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJim%20Mickle%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EChristian%20Convery%2C%20Nonso%20Anozie%2C%20Adeel%20Akhtar%2C%20Stefania%20LaVie%20Owen%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2.5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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.
ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Diriyah%20project%20at%20a%20glance
%3Cp%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%201.9km%20King%20Salman%20Boulevard%2C%20a%20Parisian%20Champs-Elysees-inspired%20avenue%2C%20is%20scheduled%20for%20completion%20in%202028%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20Royal%20Diriyah%20Opera%20House%20is%20expected%20to%20be%20completed%20in%20four%20years%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20Diriyah%E2%80%99s%20first%20of%2042%20hotels%2C%20the%20Bab%20Samhan%20hotel%2C%20will%20open%20in%20the%20first%20quarter%20of%202024%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20On%20completion%20in%202030%2C%20the%20Diriyah%20project%20is%20forecast%20to%20accommodate%20more%20than%20100%2C000%20people%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20The%20%2463.2%20billion%20Diriyah%20project%20will%20contribute%20%247.2%20billion%20to%20the%20kingdom%E2%80%99s%20GDP%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20It%20will%20create%20more%20than%20178%2C000%20jobs%20and%20aims%20to%20attract%20more%20than%2050%20million%20visits%20a%20year%0D%3Cbr%3E-%20About%202%2C000%20people%20work%20for%20the%20Diriyah%20Company%2C%20with%20more%20than%2086%20per%20cent%20being%20Saudi%20citizens%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
