London // Kasper Schmeichel says Leicester's rock solid defence is the secret to the shock leaders' remarkable charge towards a fairytale Premier League title.
Claudio Ranieri’s side are within touching distance of becoming the most unexpected champions in English football history as they head to struggling Sunderland on Sunday and Denmark goalkeeper Schmeichel has no doubts he and the four men immediately in front of him will lay the foundation for another priceless victory.
Chelsea captain John Terry this week named seven Leicester players in his vote for the PFA’s team of the year and three of those nominations were for Schmeichel and the club’s centre-backs Wes Morgan and Robert Huth.
That trio, combined with full-backs Danny Simpson and Christian Fuchs, have proved an impenetrable obstacle to opposing forwards as the pressure of the title race has mounted, with Leicester grinding out five 1-0 wins in their last six matches.
“We defend as a team, we are tough to break down. They are an absolute privilege to play behind, those boys,” Schmeichel said.
“They throw their bodies in the way of everything and give us the best opportunity to go and win games.
“Building a good foundation with clean sheets is obviously a great start. For me they are a pleasure to play behind.”
Read more Premier League news:
Tottenham edge Man United, Arsenal held at West Ham — Premier League predictions
Richard Jolly – Fortune has favoured Leicester City but that is only a small factor of their remarkable season
If the Foxes win at the Stadium of Light they will open up a 10-point lead over second placed Tottenham, who will then have to beat Manchester United at White Hart Lane later on Sunday to have any chance of remaining in the hunt.
Ranieri’s men, 5,000-1 outsiders for the title at the beginning of the season, have enjoyed such a trouble-free run-in that they could even be crowned champions for the first time as soon as April 24 against Swansea if they keep winning and other results go their way.
Tottenham have no margin for error after last weekend’s draw at Liverpool, which featured an exquisite equaliser from Harry Kane but also the frustration of failing to finish off the Reds.
Kane’s 22nd league goal of the season set a new club record in the Premier League era, but the England striker would happily swap personal plaudits for a title winners’ medal and he is determined to keep hunting the Foxes right until the end.
“Any day of the week you’d rather your team win rather than have personal achievements,” Kane said.
“For me it is about the team getting as many points as possible.
“Anything can happen; Leicester will do very well to win every game until the end of the season.
“We have to focus on our next game against Manchester United and look for the win.”
Arsenal, in third place, make the short trip across London to face West Ham knowing they must win to maintain their slender hopes of a first title since 2004.
The Gunners are 11 points behind Leicester with a game in hand and, despite successive victories, boss Arsene Wenger is as focused on securing a top four finish -- they are currently five points ahead of fifth placed Manchester United and seven in front of West Ham -- as he is on an unlikely title charge.
“We know that we need nearly the perfect run and we know as well that we don’t look only in front of us, we look behind us as well,” Wenger said.
“We are chased by a group of teams who can make it very difficult for us, so we have just to focus on our performance and hope we finish in a very strong way.”
Manchester City, clinging onto fourth place, will hope the confidence gained from their gritty 2-2 Champions League quarter-final first leg draw at Paris Saint Germain can provide the impetus to see off West Bromwich Albion at Eastlands.
Meanwhile, rock bottom Aston Villa’s seemingly inevitable relegation will be confirmed if they fail to match or better fourth bottom Norwich’s result at Crystal Palace.
Villa, who host Bournemouth, are 15 points adrift of safety with six games left and need an incredible combination of results to avoid a return to the second tier for the first time since 1988.
English Premier League fixtures (in UAE time)
Saturday
West Ham v Arsenal, 3.45pm
Aston Villa v Bournemouth, 6pm
Crystal Palace v Norwich, 6pm
Southampton v Newcastle, 6pm
Swansea v Chelsea, 6pm
Watford v Everton, 6pm
Manchester City v West Brom, 8.30pm
Sunday
Sunderland v Leicester, 4.30pm
Liverpool v Stoke, 7pm
Tottenham v Manchester United, 7pm
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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.”
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
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The 12 Syrian entities delisted by UK
Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Defence
General Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Agency
Political Security Directorate
Syrian National Security Bureau
Military Intelligence Directorate
Army Supply Bureau
General Organisation of Radio and TV
Al Watan newspaper
Cham Press TV
Sama TV
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
