At their first clear view of the treble, Juventus suffered a wobble. It is a rare event that the hermetic defence of the serial Italian champions is pierced three times in a match, and the loss, 3-1 at Roma on Sunday night, has already disrupted what had looked an impeccably planned parade taking in three trophies.
Juve might have confirmed their sixth successive Serie A title at Roma, but still remain a win short of sealing it, a win they hope to collect at the weekend, the penultimate assignment of the league calendar, against Crotone. That’s a home fixture, and the intention on Sunday is to present two prizes to fans at the Juventus arena.
The sequencing of their three-part quest may have been altered, but the treble is still on, with a Coppa Italia final against Lazio on Wednesday evening for which Massimiliano Allegri’s team promise full concentration.
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Defeat to Roma, said central defender Leonardo Bonucci, had been “an alarm call” against complacency. Lazio’s recent form means the alarm bell can hardly be switched into snooze mode.
Fifteen points separate the clubs in the league table, with Lazio, in fourth place, reconciled to playing Europa League, not Uefa Champions League football next season, but the key statistics ahead of this showdown between the holders, Juventus, and what is in some respects the hosts — the venue is Rome’s Stadio Olimpico — concern not league placings but goals.
Juventus, owners of the meanest defence in the Champions League — the prize they chase on June 3 in the Cardiff final against Real Madrid — and much the tightest in Italy, have conceded five goals in their last three matches, a figure Bonucci, fellow defender Giorgio Chiellini and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon regard as something akin to a haemorrhage by their high standards.
Buffon, excelling in this, his 40th year, looked to be at fault twice against Roma. The eyes of Keita Balde, Lazio’s in-form winger, may very well have lit up on seeing the way Roma’s Stephan El-Shaarawy, cutting in from the left, curled a fine shot across and around the Juve captain’s reach to put Roma in front on Sunday. Balde is quick and cunning at finding himself in those sorts of position.
And Balde, well aware of the imminent opening of the summer transfer window and that Sevilla currently lead a list of admirers, is on a spectacular run of form, with seven goals in Lazio’s last four outings, out of 18 his club have netted in that time.
The club’s season is ending far better than it began, which was chaotically, with the appointment and then resignation two days later of the maverick Argentine manager Marcelo Bielsa. He complained that none of the transfers he had requested from the board looked like arriving in Rome.
Simone Inzaghi, the club’s former striker, took up the job, stealthily picked up a league position in the slipstream of the top three — Juve, Roma and Napoli — and knocked out capital rivals Roma in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia.
There is acknowledgement that Juventus begin the final as favourites, and the champions have beaten Lazio twice in Serie A this season, but the hope is that playing at the Olimpico will give Lazio an extra edge.
“Lazio are in very good form,” Bonucci said, “and that’s a good stimulation for us.” Sunday’s setback at the Olimpico against Roma had led to some soul-searching, Bonucci added. “We are experienced guys, and we have had a talk about needing to get our enthusiasm back. We know we have a chance to become legendary this season.”
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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.”
Bio
Born in Dubai in 1994
Her father is a retired Emirati police officer and her mother is originally from Kuwait
She Graduated from the American University of Sharjah in 2015 and is currently working on her Masters in Communication from the University of Sharjah.
Her favourite film is Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
