Paris // Fresh from a rare weekend off, Chelsea recommence their bid for Uefa Champions League glory on Tuesday when they face injury-ravaged Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their last-16 tie at the Parc des Princes.
With a shock defeat to third-tier Bradford City last month meaning Jose Mourinho’s side were not involved in the fifth round of the FA Cup over the weekend, Chelsea were able to put their feet up and watch Paris endure the worst possible preparations for one of the glamour ties of the round.
“The rest is welcome for us. In the end they have only one game that we don’t have. It’s only one more game, but I welcome this little rest for the players,” said Mourinho before discovering what happened to PSG in a catastrophic afternoon against Caen.
RELATED
[ – Four players injured as PSG suffer preparation nightmare ahead of Chelsea ]
[ – Teams ready to put best foot forward to reach Uefa Champions League quarter-finals ]
The reigning French champions lost Yohan Cabaye, Marquinhos, Serge Aurier and Lucas to muscle injuries during the home Ligue 1 game, that saw them finish with just nine men and draw 2-2 after conceding two late goals.
Paris coach Laurent Blanc later admitted that the quartet were almost certain to miss the rematch with a Chelsea side who won when the clubs clashed in the quarter-finals of the same competition last year.
With Blaise Matuidi taking a knock in the same match and Javier Pastore battling to recover from a calf problem in time, PSG captain Thiago Silva was left to complain that his side’s European prospects had not been helped by the powers that be in the French game.
“I think the league could have protected us,” Silva told sports daily L’Equipe after a result that ensured they would remain two points behind Ligue 1 leaders Lyon. “The French authorities must think a bit more about PSG, but also Monaco (who face Arsenal in the last 16).
“It is very hard to play every three days. And for a special event like this match against Chelsea, the match against Caen could have been rearranged to allow us to prepare better.”
Silva was in the PSG side that beat Chelsea 3-1 at the Parc des Princes in the first leg of their last-eight tie almost a year ago, when his compatriot David Luiz scored an own-goal.
However, counters from Andre Schuerrle and Demba Ba helped Chelsea win 2-0 in the return to go through on away goals.
Since then David Luiz has swapped west London for Paris and will partner Silva in the heart of the home defence on Tuesday, while Schuerrle and Ba have also now left Stamford Bridge.
However, Chelsea are a stronger team these days, with Mourinho’s acquisitions in the transfer market helping take the Blues seven points clear of Manchester City at the top of the Premier League and making them favourites in this tie.
“They are much stronger. Now they have a great player up front in Diego Costa and super midfielders in (Cesc) Fabregas and (Nemanja) Matic. It will be complicated but we must think positive,” added Silva.
Costa in particular will be raring to go having just completed a three-match domestic suspension and Chelsea can also call on winger Juan Cuadrado, a January recruit from Fiorentina.
As they bid to reach the quarter-finals for the third season running, Paris need a positive result to take into the return in London on March 11.
Thiago Motta and Edinson Cavani will return after being rested at the weekend, while Gregory van der Wiel and Ezequiel Lavezzi are set to start.
“I have absolute confidence in the coach. He has already proved that he can adapt and I am sure he will find the right formula,” added Silva. “In any case it will be a fabulous match and I think it’s 50-50.”
Follow us at our new home on Twitter @NatSportUAE
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
The specs: 2018 Ford Mustang GT
Price, base / as tested: Dh204,750 / Dh241,500
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Gearbox: 10-speed automatic
Power: 460hp @ 7,000rpm
Torque: 569Nm @ 4,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.3L / 100km
Hunger and Fury: The Crisis of Democracy in the Balkans
Jasmin Mujanović, Hurst Publishers
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.”
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
About Tenderd
Started: May 2018
Founder: Arjun Mohan
Based: Dubai
Size: 23 employees
Funding: Raised $5.8m in a seed fund round in December 2018. Backers include Y Combinator, Beco Capital, Venturesouq, Paul Graham, Peter Thiel, Paul Buchheit, Justin Mateen, Matt Mickiewicz, SOMA, Dynamo and Global Founders Capital
Kill
Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat
Starring: Lakshya, Tanya Maniktala, Ashish Vidyarthi, Harsh Chhaya, Raghav Juyal
Rating: 4.5/5
Company profile
Company name: Fasset
Started: 2019
Founders: Mohammad Raafi Hossain, Daniel Ahmed
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $2.45 million
Current number of staff: 86
Investment stage: Pre-series B
Investors: Investcorp, Liberty City Ventures, Fatima Gobi Ventures, Primal Capital, Wealthwell Ventures, FHS Capital, VN2 Capital, local family offices
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Thursday (All UAE kick-off times)
Sevilla v Real Betis (midnight)
Friday
Granada v Real Betis (9.30pm)
Valencia v Levante (midnight)
Saturday
Espanyol v Alaves (4pm)
Celta Vigo v Villarreal (7pm)
Leganes v Real Valladolid (9.30pm)
Mallorca v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday
Atletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid (4pm)
Real Madrid v Eibar (9.30pm)
Real Sociedad v Osasuna (midnight)
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 582bhp
Torque: 730Nm
Price: Dh649,000
On sale: now
LIVERPOOL TOP SCORERS
(Premier League only)
Mohamed Salah 129
Robbie Fowler 128
Steven Gerrard 120
Michael Owen 118
Sadio Mane 90
SPECS: Polestar 3
Engine: Long-range dual motor with 400V battery
Power: 360kW / 483bhp
Torque: 840Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 628km
0-100km/h: 4.7sec
Top speed: 210kph
Price: From Dh360,000
On sale: September
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 3
Danilo (16'), Bernardo Silva (34'), Fernandinho (72')
Brighton & Hove Albion 1
Ulloa (20')
Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)
Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.
Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.
Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.
Get your priorities right.
And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.
