Iran manager Carlos Queiroz reacted angrily after a 1-1 draw with Portugal on Monday doomed his team to elimination from the World Cup, saying they had deserved to win.
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo should have been sent off for what he said was an elbow in the face of Morteza Pouraliganji, and Iran should have been awarded at least one more penalty.
Queiroz also implicitly criticised the refereeing and renewed his attacks on the VAR system.
"Only one winner could come out in this game and it should have been Iran," Queiroz told reporters. "We deserved to win. I am a bad loser, I am proud but frustrated."
Victory over Portugal in their final Group B match would have seen Iran through to the knockout stage. The underdogs played with huge heart in a drama-filled match.
After a lovely strike by Ricardo Quaresma put Portugal ahead on the stroke of half time, Iran fought back and a stoppage-time penalty by Karim Ansarifard secured a draw. But with Spain and Morocco drawing 2-2 in the other Group B match, it was not enough.
Queiroz was incensed by an incident in the 80th minute when Ronaldo sent Pouraliganji to the ground. The referee consulted the VAR to see if it was a red card, then decided to hand the Portuguese captain a yellow.
"An elbow is a red card. The rules do not say what if it is Ronaldo or Messi. It is a red card. The decisions must be clear," Queiroz said.
Pressed on whether he thought referees treated stars such as Ronaldo leniently, he said. "You need to ask them.
"I am not in a good mood, as you can see. There could have been at least one more penalty against Portugal, at least one.
"Five guys sitting upstairs and they don't see an elbow. Give me a break."
Asked what he thought of the refereeing, Queiroz said: "I have a clear opinion but I need to measure my words. I have to be careful."
Queiroz, who has also managed Portugal and South Africa at World Cups, poured scorn once again at the VAR system, which was used to award a dubious penalty to Portugal.
As it happened, Iran goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand saved Ronaldo's effort.
"The VAR is not going well. There are a lot of complaints. We must know who is reffing the game, who is making the decisions." he said.
"VAR gives no room for human mistakes. Before we accepted human mistakes as part of the game. The refs on the pitch are like Pilate washing their hands."
Queiroz, who has said he will quit his post after six years at the helm following this tournament, paid fulsome tribute to his players, staff and to the Iranian fans who have turned up in Russia in huge numbers.
"We have learnt a lot here, we have gained respect from people," he said. "The Iranian players are very courageous. I try to get the spirit of Portuguese bull-fighters from them. How they go into the ring and dominate the animal with courage."
HAJJAN
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INDIA SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (captain), Shikhar Dhawan (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper), Deepak Hooda, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Vijay Shankar, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohammad Siraj and Rishabh Pant (wicketkeeper)
TOUR DE FRANCE INFO
Dates: July 1-23
Distance: 3,540km
Stages: 21
Number of teams: 22
Number of riders: 198
ILT20%20UAE%20stars
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BIG SPENDERS
Premier League clubs spent £230 million (Dh1.15 billion) on January transfers, the second-highest total for the mid-season window, the Sports Business Group at Deloitte said in a report.
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 biog
First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work
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: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
