Jack Wilshere says it would be “a dream come true” to return to Arsenal, but acknowledges it is unrealistic at present.
The former England midfielder has been a free agent since leaving West Ham United at the start of October, with a year still to run on his three-year deal with the club.
He is in Dubai currently, training at the NAS Sports Complex, as he bids to maintain his fitness if any club does agree a deal with him.
On Tuesday, the former England striker Darren Bent suggested Arsenal should resign Wilshere, who spent seven years with the London club’s academy, and then 10 years in the senior side before leaving in 2018.
Arsenal have gone more than seven hours without a goal in open play in the Premier League, and sit 12th in the table.
Bent believes Wilshere has “got that creativity” to help revive Mikel Arteta’s side, and that he would jump at a move to return because “I know how much he loves the club”.
“I’m not saying give him a normal contract, but on a pay-as-you-play, I’d take him back tomorrow,” Bent said on UK radio.
“He’s only 28, a pay-as-you-play deal makes sense.”
Wilshere says he feels he has unfinished business at Arsenal, but thinks “that ship has sailed”.
"Growing up I was a West Ham fan, but because I was in the [Arsenal] academy for so long, you lose that," Wilshere told The National.
“I wasn’t like a normal kid. I was very lucky to be in such a good academy, and I learnt to love Arsenal.
“It was my dream to play for Arsenal and win things with them. And I did.
“I don’t feel like I’ve completed my time there, but at the same time, I’m realistic enough to know the club has moved on, and they have different ideas.
“Obviously, it would be a dream come true, but I think that ship has sailed, and it is time to look at different things.”
Wilshere believes Arsenal already have a solution to their lack of creativity, in the form of their out-of-favour German playmaker Mesut Ozil.
“I don’t know what has gone on there, but when you look on, it is crying out for an Ozil-type player,” Wilshere said.
“Especially with the quality they have up front, with the likes of [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang and [Alexandre] Lacazette, players who would thrive of someone like that.
“I think Arteta knows what he is doing. He has a plan, and it is going to take some time and I think he will get there eventually.”
ARGENTINA SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Franco Armani, Agustin Marchesin, Esteban Andrada
Defenders: Juan Foyth, Nicolas Otamendi, German Pezzella, Nicolas Tagliafico, Ramiro Funes Mori, Renzo Saravia, Marcos Acuna, Milton Casco
Midfielders: Leandro Paredes, Guido Rodriguez, Giovani Lo Celso, Exequiel Palacios, Roberto Pereyra, Rodrigo De Paul, Angel Di Maria
Forwards: Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Lautaro Martinez, Paulo Dybala, Matias Suarez
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At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
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.”
Company profile
Name: Thndr
Started: October 2020
Founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: pre-seed of $800,000
Funding stage: series A; $20 million
Investors: Tiger Global, Beco Capital, Prosus Ventures, Y Combinator, Global Ventures, Abdul Latif Jameel, Endure Capital, 4DX Ventures, Plus VC, Rabacap and MSA Capital
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Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
