Premier League predictions: Man City to be champions, Liverpool and Spurs to win big

Arsenal v Everton (All games Sunday, 7pm kick off UAE)

Despite winning five games on the spin, Arsenal look set to finish second in the title race for the second season in a row. The Gunners – two points behind Manchester City – need to beat Everton and hope the leaders stumble against West Ham.

Everton have ended a troubled season on a high after taking 13 points out of a possible 15 to drag themselves well clear of the relegation zone.

Prediction: Arsenal 3 Everton 0

Brentford v Newcastle United

Brentford's 2-1 win at Bournemouth last week means Thomas Frank's side are unbeaten in five games, and while 16th in the table will be considered a disappointment, they are a comfortable 13 points above the final relegation spot.

Newcastle's midweek defeat at Manchester United leaves them needing a win and Chelsea to lose to clinch sixth place and have European football guaranteed. Or win and grab seventh, with European football next season in the bag as long as the Red Devils lose the FA Cup final to Manchester City.

Prediction: Brentford 2 Newcastle 3

Brighton v Manchester United

After a draw at Newcastle and a midweek defeat against Chelsea, it is another team chasing European football next up for the Seagulls, who need a win to guarantee 10th place.

United need to achieve a better result than Newcastle to claim seventh spot in the table having defeated the Magpies 3-2 at Old Trafford on Wednesday, only their second win in nine games.

Prediction: Brighton 2 Man United 2

Burnley v Nottingham Forest

Burnley are already relegated after a return of one point in three games that leaves them second bottom, five points shy of Forest in 17th and Premier League safety.

Forest are three points clear of 18th-place Luton and enjoy a vastly superior goal difference of -19 compared to the Hatters' -31, meaning their top-flight place is secure for another season.

Prediction: Burnley 1 Forest 2

Chelsea v Bournemouth

The Blues have one foot in Europe for next season after their midweek win at Brighton lifted them up to sixth in the table. Victory at Stamford Bridge will seal sixth and European football next season. If Manchester United lose the FA Cup final next weekend then it's Europa League, or if United win, the Europa Conference League. They could even sneak into fifth but that would need current occupants Spurs losing to bottom club Sheffield United.

Bournemouth are playing for league positions and the extra cash from finishing as high as possible in the table. Depending on how the match finishes at Stamford Bridge and the results of teams around them, the Cherries could finish as high as 10th or as low as 13th.

Prediction: Chelsea 3 Bournemouth 1

Crystal Palace v Aston Villa

Palace are on a fantastic run of form which, if results go their way, could see them finish in 10th place. The Eagles' 3-1 win at Wolves last week was their fifth win in six games.

Fourth place and Champions League football next season is safe and secured for Villa, despite taking only two points out of a possible nine of late.

Prediction: Palace 2 Villa 1

Liverpool v Wolves

Jurgen Klopp has had to settle for third place in his final season in charge but Anfield will give him the send off he deserves after a trophy-laden spell on Merseyside.

Wolves have struggled in recent weeks, having lost four out of their last five games, and could finish as high as 10th or as low as 14th depending on how they do at Anfield and how other results go.

Prediction: Liverpool 4 Wolves 1

Luton Town v Fulham

Luton's relegation is all but sealed after their loss at West Ham last week left them three points behind fourth-bottom Nottingham Forest with a significantly worse goal difference.

Fulham have won only once in eight games – and were thrashed 4-0 at home by Manchester City last week – killing off their hopes of a top-10 finish

Prediction: Luton 3 Fulham 3

Manchester City v West Ham

The task is simple for Manchester City: Victory and they are champions for a fourth season in a row, following a superb run of form that has seen them win eight games on the spin. Draw or lose and Arsenal win, it is second place for Pep Guardiola's side.

David Moyes oversees his final game as West Ham manager having watched his team win for the first time in four matches against Luton last weekend.

Prediction: Man City 5 West Ham 0

Sheffield United v Tottenham Hotspur

The Blades have finished rock-bottom of the table having won just three games all season and sit 13 points shy of safety. Chris Wilder's side are also on a six-match losing streak.

Spurs will seal fifth spot in the table if they avoid defeat although they have lost five of their last six games, the last of which was a 2-0 home defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday.

Prediction: Sheffield United 1 Spurs 4

WIDE%20VIEW

%3Cp%3EThe%20benefits%20of%20HoloLens%202%2C%20according%20to%20Microsoft%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EManufacturing%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Reduces%20downtime%20and%20speeds%20up%20onboarding%20and%20upskilling%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngineering%20and%20construction%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Accelerates%20the%20pace%20of%20construction%20and%20mitigates%20risks%20earlier%20in%20the%20construction%20cycle%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EHealth%20care%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Enhances%20the%20delivery%20of%20patient%20treatment%20at%20the%20point%20of%20care%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEducation%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Improves%20student%20outcomes%20and%20teaches%20from%20anywhere%20with%20experiential%20learning%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Graduated from the American University of Sharjah

She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters

Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks

Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding

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.”