LEEDS // In the competition Manchester United use to blood their kids, Michael Owen and Ryan Giggs combined to see off Leeds 3-0 and ease the Red Devils into the Carling Cup fourth round.
Owen had not kicked a ball in a competitive match before the contest began but scored twice to take his tally to an impressive 11 goals in 12 starts. Then Giggs followed up his effort in Benfica last week by curling home his 161st career goal, nutmegging Tom Lees in the process.
The game won by half-time, Sir Alex Ferguson did give youth a chance afterwards, Danny Welbeck among those introduced after the England man recovered from his hamstring injury.
But the Championship club were never a threat to United, even though the visitors ended the game with 10 men after the debutant Ezekiel Fryers limped off, leaving last season's joint Golden Boot winner Dimitar Berbatov to partner Michael Carrick in central defence.
A gap of eight years between visits to Elland Road, punctuated by their 2010 FA Cup triumph at Old Trafford when Simon Grayson's team were still in League One (third tier of English football), had heightened anticipation among the white rose contingent.
Had either Lees' header, or Ross McCormack's follow-up gone in, the roof would have come off this famous old stadium. As it was, Ferguson found an unlikely saviour in Berbatov, who booted off the line on both occasions, allowing United to assume total control by half-time.
Owen's first goal involved a little jink inside Lees after he had collected Park Ji-sung's square pass, then a rather scruffy finish that ended up in the bottom corner.
Andy Lonergan had no chance there, and he was equally helpless with Owen's second. Again, the cross came from the right, this time delivered by Mame Biram Diouf. The finish was clinical, one touch to control, the second to belt it into the top corner.
Giggs provided the perfect ending to the first-half for the Premier League champions, pushing the ball through Lees' legs after collecting Park's return pass from a short corner, then curling home a deflected effort with the outside of his trusty left foot.
It proved to be the end of the veteran Welshman's contribution as promising midfielder Paul Pogba was given his first taste of senior action at the break.
Elsewhere, Arsenal had to come from behind to beat League 2 outfit Shrewsbury Town.
Arsenal's terrible start to the domestic season looked like continuing when they fell behind to James Collins's 16th minute header for Shrewsbury but Kieran Gibbs levelled in the 33rd. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, 18, put last year's runners-up ahead just before the hour and Yossi Benayoun also got his first Arsenal goal to ease the pressure on manager Arsene Wenger.
Third round results
Aldershot 2-1 Rochdale
Arsenal 3-1 Shrewsbury
Aston Villa 0-2 Bolton
Blackburn 3-2 Leyton Orient 2
Burnley 2-1 Milton Keynes Dons
Crystal Palace 2-1 Middlesbrough
Leeds 0-3 Man Utd
Nottingham Forest 3-4 Newcastle 4
Stoke 0-0 Tottenham aet, Stoke won 7-6 on penalties
Wolves 5-0 Millwall
Today's matches
Brighton v Liverpool
Cardiff v Leicester
Chelsea v Fulham
Man City v Birmingham
Southampton v Preston
Everton v West Brom
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
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.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Zayed%20Centre%20for%20Research
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Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
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.”
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now