FC Porto remained unbeaten in the Champions League this season and qualified for the quarter-finals for the first time since 2009 as they defeated Swiss side FC Basel 5-1 on aggregate on Tuesday.
Goals from Yacine Brahimi, Hector Herrera, Casemiro and Vincent Aboubakar, combined for a 4-0 win at the Estadio do Dragao, and continued Basel’s poor form in Portugal as their coach Paulo Sousa endured a miserable return to his homeland.
The first leg had finished 1-1 three weeks ago in Switzerland.
Porto coach Julen Lopetegui said he was both happy and proud at his side’s passage into the last eight.
“You have to applaud the entire team for this fantastic performance against a very difficult opponent who came here determined to qualify,” said Lopetegui.
“We deserve to be in the Champions League quarter-finals even if we came through qualifying. I am very happy and very proud of my players who showed a lot of character.” he added.
The Swiss champions have yet to win on six trips to Portugal while Sousa, a former Benfica and Sporting Lisbon midfielder, saw his side fail again in their bid to reach the quarter-finals for the first time.
Algeria’s Brahimi eased the nerves of the home fans and put the two-time champions in charge with a precision free-kick after just 14 minutes.
Former Argentina international Walter Samuel, who won the 2010 Champions League with Inter Milan, committed the offence that led to the setpiece and Brahimi made no mistake from just outside the box.
The 25-year-old, curled the ball past the wall as Basel keeper Thomas Vaclik stood rooted to his line and was well beaten to the left of his goal.
Samuel was later sent off in the final minute for a second yellow card.
Porto’s Brazilian captain Danilo was then carried off with a worrying injury, and left the stadium in an ambulance, when he collided just outside the penalty area with his own goalkeeper and compatriot Fabiano.
Hector Herrera then scored his third goal of the competition with a neat right-foot shot from the edge of the area two minutes after half-time as Basel continued to crumble.
Brahimi again played a key role as his surging run and lay-off to Herrera laid the foundations for the goal.
“We showed a lot of confidence right from the start of the match and we were determined and conscious of what we had to do,” said Herrera.
“I think that the result shows that the team played very well but that’s the Champions League, you can’t be distracted because any team can hurt you.” he added.
As Basel struggled to stay in touch, the evening went from bad to worse for the visitors on 56 minutes with another precision strike from Casemiro.
The Brazilian hit a long range free-kick that flew past Vaclik and killed off any chances of a Basel comeback.
Cameroonian Aboubakar put the gloss on a fine night’s work for the Portuguese champions with their fourth goal on 76 minutes with another high quality strike from 25 yards.
Porto, who won the competition in 1987 and 2004, now go into the hat for the quarter-finals for the first time since they were beaten 3-2 in the last eight by Manchester United in 2009.
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The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh960,000
Engine 3.9L twin-turbo V8
Transmission Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Power 661hp @8,000rpm
Torque 760Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.4L / 100k
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Explainer: Tanween Design Programme
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
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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.”
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Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
MATCH INFO
Fixture: Ukraine v Portugal, Monday, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: BeIN Sports
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