The UAE will require a vastly improved performance against Iraq on Tuesday evening if their World Cup qualification hopes are not going to expire in Basra.
Cosmin Olaroiu acknowledged his side had been “terrible” and struck by the stress of the last-chance situation they are in, after the first leg in Abu Dhabi on Thursday.
“We cannot build properly from the back, we cannot pass the first line of pressing they have,” Olaroiu, the national team coach, complained inside Mohamed Bin Zayed Stadium after that 1-1 draw.
Now the UAE are up against a 65,000 capacity crowd in a city known for the passion of its football supporters. They are without some key figures through injury. And only the winners will advance to the final qualification play-off in Mexico next year.
The stakes could hardly be much higher. And yet the UAE are still in with a chance, and Olaroiu will know well the improvements that need to be made for them to contend.
Defensive set pieces
The national team have an obvious Achilles heel: each of the last three goals they have conceded have come because of their inability to defend set pieces.
Akram Afif’s precise delivery did for them twice in the Asian qualifier play-off against Qatar in Doha last month.
Then, 10 minutes into the first leg of the play-off against Iraq, they failure to adequately clear another cross into the box from a free-kick sent them a goal behind.
They should be able to organise themselves enough to repel crosses into their box from set plays. Having a diminutive left-back in the form of Ruben Canedo means they need more height elsewhere in the back line.
Olaroiu has drafted in the Al Nasr defender Gustavo Alex, while Kouame Autonne might be in for an immediate recall.
Better discipline
A fail-safe way of keeping out crosses from attacking free-kicks is not to make fouls in dangerous positions in the first place.
The concessions against Qatar were cheap, while against Iraq there were a succession of giveaways which the UAE were lucky not to concede from.
“They play in their way,” Olaroiu said of Iraq after the first leg. “They use their physicality. They use these long balls to the strikers.
“They win every time, the first ball, the second ball. And they dominate us in this situation.
“In the set pieces, they had six corners and five free-kicks in the first half. We survived these situations but a few times we made terrible mistake and [Khalid Essa, the UAE goalkeeper] saved us.”
Making use of Sultan Adil
For all the problems the UAE faced at the back in the first leg, they travelled to Basra on even terms, and knowing they can do damage to Iraq’s backline themselves.
Despite Iraq’s aerial dominance and physicality, the UAE showed they could threaten when they made it into the final third.
Luan Pereira’s finish was decisive when Abdullah Ramadan played in an appetising cross from the right-hand side for the equalising goal.
They thought they had the game won from a late free-kick that Caio Lucas bundled in from close range, only for it to be ruled out for offside.
The UAE would benefit if they can get more crosses in the direction of Sultan Adil. The forward is a physical presence, and the national team need to make better use of him than they managed on Thursday.
Arnie-ball threat
All the threats Iraq posed in Abu Dhabi felt strangely familiar. There is a good reason for that. The UAE were knocked out of a similar last-chance play-off four years ago by an Australia side managed by Graham Arnold, who is now in charge of Iraq.
After Thursday’s game, Arnold played down the idea that he has transposed the method he used with Australia back in 2022 to his side now.
He pointed out that the UAE side is much changed to that of four years ago. Only Essa, Ramadan and Harib Abdallah were in the starting XI from that game against Australia and the game against Iraq on Thursday.
He was, though, pleased with the mode of playing of his new charges. “You play players to their strengths and the way I'm feeling is I'm getting the maximum out of every player for Iraq and out of the team and that's the most important thing,” Arnold said.
“The Iraqi national team do that, never play like that. They're pressing, and they’re doing very well. It’s missing the individual to put the ball in the back of the net, but they’re making the chances and it's positive.”
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
PSA DUBAI WORLD SERIES FINALS LINE-UP
Men’s:
Mohamed El Shorbagy (EGY)
Ali Farag (EGY)
Simon Rosner (GER)
Tarek Momen (EGY)
Miguel Angel Rodriguez (COL)
Gregory Gaultier (FRA)
Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY)
Nick Matthew (ENG)
Women's:
Nour El Sherbini (EGY)
Raneem El Welily (EGY)
Nour El Tayeb (EGY)
Laura Massaro (ENG)
Joelle King (NZE)
Camille Serme (FRA)
Nouran Gohar (EGY)
Sarah-Jane Perry (ENG)
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Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
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Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
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The biog
Born: Kuwait in 1986
Family: She is the youngest of seven siblings
Time in the UAE: 10 years
Hobbies: audiobooks and fitness: she works out every day, enjoying kickboxing and basketball
Young women have more “financial grit”, but fall behind on investing
In an October survey of young adults aged 16 to 25, Charles Schwab found young women are more driven to reach financial independence than young men (67 per cent versus. 58 per cent). They are more likely to take on extra work to make ends meet and see more value than men in creating a plan to achieve their financial goals. Yet, despite all these good ‘first’ measures, they are investing and saving less than young men – falling early into the financial gender gap.
While the women surveyed report spending 36 per cent less than men, they have far less savings than men ($1,267 versus $2,000) – a nearly 60 per cent difference.
In addition, twice as many young men as women say they would invest spare cash, and almost twice as many young men as women report having investment accounts (though most young adults do not invest at all).
“Despite their good intentions, young women start to fall behind their male counterparts in savings and investing early on in life,” said Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, senior vice president, Charles Schwab. “They start off showing a strong financial planning mindset, but there is still room for further education when it comes to managing their day-to-day finances.”
Ms Schwab-Pomerantz says parents should be conveying the same messages to boys and girls about money, but should tailor those conversations based on the individual and gender.
"Our study shows that while boys are spending more than girls, they also are saving more. Have open and honest conversations with your daughters about the wage and savings gap," she said. "Teach kids about the importance of investing – especially girls, who as we see in this study, aren’t investing as much. Part of being financially prepared is learning to make the most of your money, and that means investing early and consistently."
England-South Africa Test series
1st Test England win by 211 runs at Lord's, London
2nd Test South Africa win by 340 runs at Trent Bridge, Nottingham
3rd Test July 27-31 at The Oval, London
4th Test August 4-8 at Old Trafford, Manchester
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.”
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Rest
(Because Music)
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 3 (Son 1', Kane 8' & 16') West Ham United 3 (Balbuena 82', Sanchez og 85', Lanzini 90' 4)
Man of the match Harry Kane
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Afghanistan fixtures
- v Australia, today
- v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
- v New Zealand, Saturday,
- v South Africa, June 15
- v England, June 18
- v India, June 22
- v Bangladesh, June 24
- v Pakistan, June 29
- v West Indies, July 4
