London // Arsene Wenger has challenged his Arsenal stars to use their FA Cup final masterclass as inspiration to mount a serious bid for the Premier League title next season.
Wenger's side made history at Wembley on Saturday with a 4-0 rout of Aston Villa that underlined their renaissance in the second half of the campaign and served as a warning to English champions Chelsea.
Goals from Theo Walcott, Alexis Sanchez, Per Mertesacker and Olivier Giroud ensured Wenger became the first post-War manager to win the FA Cup six times, while the Gunners are now the most successful club in the history of the famous old competition after lifting the trophy for the 12th time.
Read more:
– Richard Jolly: Arsene Wenger is a proven winner and his FA Cup history for Arsenal proves that
– Jonathan Wilson: Arsenal had Aston Villa locked up completely in FA Cup final anti-climax
It was also the biggest FA Cup final margin of victory since 1994, but even those gaudy statistics don’t do justice to the potential impact of Arsenal’s stylish display.
After a spluttering start to the season that raised renewed questions about Wenger’s future, the Frenchman and his team have got their groove back over the last few months, rattling off a long winning streak to climb to a third place finish in the league before winning the Cup.
Now, 11 years after they were last crowned kings of England, Wenger is willing to talk bullishly about a sustained assault on the title and even invoked the memory of his famous ‘Invincibles’, who went undefeated en route to winning the league in 2004.
“I feel we have made progress since the start of the season for sure, in the way we play, the way we manage games and our togetherness as well,” Wenger said.
“We finished third and won the Cup. It’s a good platform to do well next season.
“It’s about consistency at the top level. We have shown signs of consistency.
“Remember we are the only ones who didn’t lose for 49 games. Nobody else has done it.
“When we have that kind of strong consistency we can challenge.”
Arsenal’s revival has been helped by the loosening of the purse strings at the Emirates Stadium, with the big-money acquisitions of Sanchez and Mesut Ozil over the last two years adding guile, grace and big-game know-how to a team of notoriously brittle confidence.
And the assured way they dealt with Villa, highlighted by Sanchez’s brilliant long-range strike, gave Wenger confidence he doesn’t need to invest in many more new signings over the close-season.
“We will see what is going on in the transfer market, but we already have a good basis and a good confidence level,” he said.
“Lets be intelligent in the summer. Of course we can push on. We have won the league before when we had the potential to do it. Lets do it again.”
Even a football obsessive like Wenger wanted to focus on enjoying the fruits of a hard season for a few hours at least however and he dodged any further questions on potential transfer targets.
“I’m not in a buying (players) mood tonight. I will just buy a drink for my players!” he said.
“How will I celebrate? The players have organised it all. I have organised the whole year so I will follow them for a change!”
Grim-faced Villa manager Tim Sherwood was more forthcoming about his plans for next season as he surveyed the wreckage of his team’s failed bid to win the Cup for the first time since 1957.
Sherwood earned plaudits for helping Villa avoid relegation following his arrival in February, but the way his players meekly accepted defeat on Saturday only emphasised how much rebuilding still needs to be done to a squad grown used to underachievement.
“The group needs to get better, they need to change their mentality because quite a few of them are too used to losing matches,” Sherwood said.
“The job was to come and keep the team in the division which I managed to achieve, but I have to improve this team.
“The process starts immediately. Some of the boys have already been told they won’t be here next season. I had to be honest with them.”
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The Specs:
The Specs:
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Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 444bhp
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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.”
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
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Ordinary Virtues: Moral Order in a Divided World by Michael Ignatieff
Harvard University Press
Du Football Champions
The fourth season of du Football Champions was launched at Gitex on Wednesday alongside the Middle East’s first sports-tech scouting platform.“du Talents”, which enables aspiring footballers to upload their profiles and highlights reels and communicate directly with coaches, is designed to extend the reach of the programme, which has already attracted more than 21,500 players in its first three years.
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
