AC Milan midfielder Ismael Bennacer says the club will use the hurt of last season’s Uefa Champions League semi-final exit to fuel their bid to go all the way this campaign.
The Serie A side, seven-time European Cup winners, reached the last four of the 2022/23 tournament, but were beaten 3-0 on aggregate in May by city rivals Inter Milan.
Milan, who qualified for last season’s Champions League by winning a first Scudetto in 11 years the previous year, last lifted Europe’s premier club trophy in 2007.
This season, Milan sit third in an incredibly tight Group F with two matches remaining, one point off second-placed Paris Saint-Germain and two back from leaders Borussia Dortmund. Newcastle United, meanwhile, lie bottom, although only three points off the summit.
Milan round off the group against Dortmund, at home on November 29, and Newcastle, away, two weeks later.
Speaking on Monday in Dubai at an event to mark the opening of Casa Milan Dubai, the club’s new base in the emirate, Bennacer told The National: “First, you play to win the Champions League, not playing just to be in the Champions League.
“Then, when you have the taste of the Champions League semi-final, you want to go higher, to do better. And that’s why we will try this year.
“Because as I said, we’re not just here to be here in the group and that’s it, or quarter-final and that’s it. No, we want to win it. But, as we saw, a lot of teams will have a chance to win it.”
Bennacer, 25, has not featured for Milan this season following surgery on a knee injury sustained early in the first leg of the semi-final with Inter, on May 10.
The Algeria international has been an integral component of Stefano Pioli’s team since moving to San Siro from Empoli in 2019, helping Milan finish runners-up in Serie A in his second season. He then played a pivotal role in Milan's title success the following year.
Bennacer said on Monday that he expected to return to action midway through next month.
Asked about the frustration of his lengthy spell on the sidelines, the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations winner said: “That’s hard. When you have this type of injury, and at this moment as well, because that was one of the most important games of my life.
“But it’s OK, when you see positive things day by day, you work, you have some [programme] to come back, you see there’s some steps. I was not working for two months, and then after you are doing the bike, then running, then more.
“As I said, you have to see the positive things; I spent time more with my family, with myself as well. I’m not happy [to be injured], but it’s OK.
“Everything is going well, and I don’t feel anything on my knee. There’s been no reaction as well.”
Bennacer said he could use the frustration as motivation to return to top form and help Milan’s quest for silverware this season.
“When you’re playing for AC Milan, you want to win every year,” he said. “And also everything, even though it’s hard. This year we have a very, very good team, very good players, new arrivals.
“All the time we are making a team. It will take time a little bit, but we will be OK.”
Last week, Milan rebounded from a run of four matches without a win – three of which were losses – with a come-from-behind, 2-1 victory at home in the Champions League to PSG.
And, though at the weekend they slipped eight points behind Serie A leaders Juventus having surrendered a 2-0 lead at Lecce to draw 2-2, midfielder Yacine Adli believes the PSG result can still spark Milan’s season.
“Last week was a really important game,” said Adli, sitting alongside Bennacer. “We made a very good game in a crazy atmosphere, and we were very happy.
“We struggled a little bit in Serie A these last months, but we know the way is long in the Champions League and in Serie A [Milan are third in the table after 12 matches]. So we will try to keep working and do more every day to reach our goals.
“It’s not easy every day. But it’s our job. We have to do it and we will do it because, like I said, we are in such a big club and we need to do it for the club, for the fans and for us also.”
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi
Director: Kangana Ranaut, Krish Jagarlamudi
Producer: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni
Rating: 2.5/5
SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 20: 11am to 7pm - Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Festival and Para jiu-jitsu.
Sunday, April 21: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (female) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Monday, April 22: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (male) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Tuesday, April 23: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Masters Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Wednesday, April 24: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Thursday, April 25: 11am-5pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Friday, April 26: 3pm to 6pm Finals of the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Saturday, April 27: 4pm and 8pm awards ceremony.
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
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.”
Straightforward ways to reduce sugar in your family's diet
- Ban fruit juice and sodas
- Eat a hearty breakfast that contains fats and wholegrains, such as peanut butter on multigrain toast or full-fat plain yoghurt with whole fruit and nuts, to avoid the need for a 10am snack
- Give young children plain yoghurt with whole fruits mashed into it
- Reduce the number of cakes, biscuits and sweets. Reserve them for a treat
- Don’t eat dessert every day
- Make your own smoothies. Always use the whole fruit to maintain the benefit of its fibre content and don’t add any sweeteners
- Always go for natural whole foods over processed, packaged foods. Ask yourself would your grandmother have eaten it?
- Read food labels if you really do feel the need to buy processed food
- Eat everything in moderation
States of Passion by Nihad Sirees,
Pushkin Press
Arabian Gulf League fixtures:
Friday:
- Emirates v Hatta, 5.15pm
- Al Wahda v Al Dhafra, 5.25pm
- Al Ain v Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, 8.15pm
Saturday:
- Dibba v Ajman, 5.15pm
- Sharjah v Al Wasl, 5.20pm
- Al Jazira v Al Nasr, 8.15pm
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Results:
CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
4. Nadia Taryam (UAE) Askaria 3 39.63
5. Miriam Schneider (GER) Fidelius G 47.74
