Cristiano Ronaldo helps Andrea Pirlo get off to a winning start at Juventus as fans return - in pictures

Cristiano Ronaldo helped Andrea Pirlo's coaching career launch with a victory as Juventus beat Sampdoria 3-0 in Serie A.

Dejan Kulusevski scored on his debut and second-half goals from Leonardo Bonucci and Ronaldo sealed the result on a day which saw fans return to Serie A stadiums.

“They are great players and I am so confident because I see every day quality players who are working toward the team in order to improve,” Pirlo said.

"Of course, we have just started and we have time to improve, but the commitment of the players to give it all to the team is there and that gives me a lot of comfort.”

It was a positive day for debutants as Weston McKennie — the first American to play for Juventus — had a hand in Bonucci’s goal and also sparked a move which led to Ronaldo hitting the crossbar.

“McKennie arrived having already started preseason training in Germany, so is in better shape than some others," Pirlo said. “He did well. He made a few errors but it was the first game, we can forgive him for that.”

Juventus are bidding for a record-extending 10th straight Serie A title but have an unproven coach in Pirlo.

The former midfield genius was handed his first coaching job last month when he was put in charge of Juventus' under-23 team, but had not led a game when he was promoted to replace the fired Maurizio Sarri.

Juve played from the start with an intensity which had been lacking for much of last season and took the lead in the 13th minute.

Ronaldo burst into the box and was stopped by a tackle but the ball fell to Kulusevski and the former Parma midfielder curled it into the bottom left corner.

It took Juventus until 12 minutes from time to get their second. Sampdoria goalkeeper Emil Audero did well to keep out McKennie's effort from close range but Bonucci tucked away the rebound.

Ronaldo, who scored 31 league goals last season, managed to get off the mark for this campaign in the final minutes as he ran on to Aaron Ramsey’s through ball and placed a precise drive into the bottom left corner.

“It’s a fantastic night," Kulusevski said. "It wasn’t that easy but we got the three points and I scored a goal. It’s best to have scored in the first game, so I don’t have to think anymore about getting off the mark now.

“Pirlo as a coach is calm. He believes a lot in his players and in me. He lets me play and gives me so much confidence."

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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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