Nicolas Jackson scored two and set up another for Cole Palmer as Chelsea handed out a 3-0 derby battering to woeful West Ham United on Saturday.
Chelsea opened the scoring after just four minutes when a quickly-taken free-kick saw West Ham's defence switch off. Jadon Sancho supplied a ball to Jackson who was given the freedom of the London Stadium to race through and slot the ball through Alphonse Areola's legs.
It was the fifth time this season that the Hammers had conceded in the first five minutes of a Premier League game in 2024.
And the situation quickly worsened for Julen Lopetegui's side when a sweeping Chelsea move ended with Moises Caicedo threading a ball through to Jackson before the Senegalese striker calmly finished his second with less than 20 minutes gone.
“[My confidence is] growing higher with my teammates, they help me a lot and they have confidence in me,” Jackson said to TNT Sports after the game.
“We keep going. This one is finished and next week we go on to another one. The most important thing is for the team to win.
“I am happy to play always. To fight for the team and the team to win is the most important thing.”
His teammate Palmer added: "Everybody knows he [Nicolas] is a top player – he needs to keep going. The Chelsea fans and players rate him highly – we know what he is capable of.
"There will always be noise, we try to block it out and listen to the manager. We have a good manager and it can only help us to get better."
There was double home frustration around the half-hour mark. First, when Crysencio Summerville went down inside the Chelsea box after having his arm held by Wesley Fofana, only for referee Samuel Barrott and VAR official Stuart Attwell to rule no penalty.
Minutes later, Mohammed Kudus had the ball in the back of the net only to have the goal ruled out for offside.
A clearly agitated Lopetegui then replaced Argentine midfielder Guido Rodriguez with Tomas Soucek six minutes before half-time in a bid to to get some sort of foothold in the game.
But any hopes West Ham had of launching a comeback ended just after half-time. A sweeping Chelsea counter-attack saw Jackson slot Palmer in on goal and the England international finished superbly via Areola's near post.
West Ham heads were now gone as Edson Alvarez picked up a booking for chopping down Palmer from behind as a stunned home crowd looked on in quiet disbelief.
Jarrod Bowen at least tested Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea goal after 51 minutes but there were jeers moments later from West Ham fans when Summerville, one of the team's few bright spots, was hooked by Lopetegui as the mood darkened again around the ground.
West Ham Hame atl east avoided conceding again after Chelsea substitute Joao Felix twice shot wide while Noni Madueke – who scored a hat-trick against Wolves last month – wasted a three-on-one opportunity when his shot was saved by Areola when teammates were crying out for a pass.
The final whistle was met by boos as West Ham were left to lick the wounds of losing each of their opening three home games of a league campaign for the first time.
It means all Lopetegui has to show for a £120 million outlay on nine summer signings since replacing David Moyes are those London Stadium defeats, a scrappy win at Crystal Palace and a last-gasp draw with Fulham.
Chelsea moved up to second in the table on 10 points with seven other Saturday matches still to play while West Ham are 14th.
"We were never in the game which is an awful thing to say," admitted Bowen. "The goals that they scored were easy on our part – two gifts.
"You have to be switched on in every moment. On the pitch it felt quite easy to play through [us], a disappointing day all-round.
"Of course, as a player and captain you have to lead and rally everyone together. We gave them too much respect in the end.
"Disappointing day, we accept the defeat. The game is done and we put it to bed and see what we can improve on. Games are coming thick and fast to put it right.
"We still have a lot of games to go and that is a positive for us."
Company%20Profile
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The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html" charset="UTF-8" /></head><body><!--PSTYLE=* Labels%3aFH Label 18 Sport--><p>Beach soccer</p><!--PSTYLE=BY Byline--><p>Amith Passela</p><p /></body></html>
Results
4.30pm Jebel Jais – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (Turf) 1,000m; Winner: MM Al Balqaa, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Qaiss Aboud (trainer)
5pm: Jabel Faya – Maiden (PA) Dh60,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: AF Rasam, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
5.30pm: Al Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: AF Mukhrej, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
6pm: The President’s Cup Prep – Conditions (PA) Dh100,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Mujeeb, Richard Mullen, Salem Al Ketbi
6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club – Prestige (PA) Dh125,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Jawal Al Reef, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud
7pm: Al Ruwais – Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Pat Dobbs, Ibrahim Aseel
7.30pm: Jebel Hafeet – Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Nibraas, Richard Mullen, Nicholas Bachalard
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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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Brief scores
Day 1
Toss England, chose to bat
England, 1st innings 357-5 (87 overs): Root 184 not out, Moeen 61 not out, Stokes 56; Philander 3-46
The%20Specs
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