Mendes looks for home comforts

DUBAI // The UAE coach Marcelo Mendes is confident his team can overcome the disappointment of the last time the national side faced Portugal and take the host nation to the knock-out phase of the Beach Soccer World Cup. The Europeans face the UAE on the opening day of the tournament on Monday. With matches against Solomon Islands and Uruguay to follow, the first game could well decide UAE's hopes of clinching a quarter-final berth from their group.

Despite the stresses any manager faces before a major tournament, Mendes is sure his side can achieve a better result than the 3-1 defeat they suffered at the Mundialito de Futebol de Praia in August against Portugal, one of the World Cup favourites. While he cannot stop himself from worrying, Mendes knows his opposite number will be thinking the same. "I cannot sleep," said the Brazilian, who has previously coached two of the UAE's Group A opponents, Portugal and Uruguay. "We start to think about Portugal - how we should play against them, how we can stop them. But, believe me, they will be thinking the same. They know we have a good team.

"We played against Portugal in August and they beat us 3-1, but it was not easy for them. They came to the match thinking they will beat us easily, but soon they realised how difficult it is. They had to run hard and do a lot to beat us. "Here, we are at home and they will have to run double. If they play at a normal pace, they will lose. "After that we have Solomon Islands and Uruguay. Let's see what happens. We are very confident. We are working hard and everything is OK in the team."

The UAE face Eric Cantona's French team today in a friendly. Yesterday, Japan dashed Iran's dream of qualifying for the finals with a 5-3 victory in the semi-finals of the Asian qualifiers in Dubai to confirm the No 1 Asian side's place among the 16 nations that will battle for the world title. Joining Japan in the World Cup are Bahrain, who defeated Oman 6-1 for their second appearance in the tournament. The winners of today's final between Japan and Bahrain will find themselves in Group D of the World Cup, alongside Brazil, Nigeria and Switzerland. The runners-up will join Spain, Ivory Coast and El Salvador in Group B. @Email:arizvi@thenational.ae

GOLF’S RAHMBO

- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)

england euro squad

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Man Utd), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton)

Defenders: John Stones (Man City), Luke Shaw (Man Utd), Harry Maguire (Man Utd), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (Man City), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Reece James (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid)

Midfielders: Mason Mount (Chelsea), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds)

Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Man Utd), Raheem Sterling (Man City), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

FINAL RESULT

Sharjah Wanderers 20 Dubai Tigers 25 (After extra-time)

Wanderers
Tries: Gormley, Penalty
cons: Flaherty
Pens: Flaherty 2

Tigers
Tries: O’Donnell, Gibbons, Kelly
Cons: Caldwell 2
Pens: Caldwell, Cross

UAE v Gibraltar

What: International friendly

When: 7pm kick off

Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City

Admission: Free

Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page

UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)

How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

Abu Dhabi Card

5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 1,400m

National selection: AF Mohanak

5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 90,000 1,400m

National selection: Jayide Al Boraq

6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 100,000 1,400m

National selection: Rocket Power

6.30pm: Abu Dhabi Championship Listed (PA) Dh 180,000 1,600m

National selection: Ihtesham

7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 1,600m

National selection: Noof KB

7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 80,000 2.200m

National selection: EL Faust

Match info

Wolves 0

Arsenal 2 (Saka 43', Lacazette 85')

Man of the match: Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)

UAE and Coronavirus

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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How to apply for a drone permit

Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
Submit their request

What are the regulations?

Fly it within visual line of sight
Never over populated areas
Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
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Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
Should have a live feed of the drone flight
Drones must weigh 5 kg or less