Bayern Munich held their annual general meeting on Friday evening, and the principle item on the agenda was whether or not to endorse the return of Uli Hoeness, former player, general manager and club legend to the top of the club’s hierarchy. Hoeness vacated the role of president rather suddenly in March 2014 to serve a prison sentence for tax evasion.
Among the power-brokers at the largest club in German, there seems widespread agreement that Hoeness, 64 and has emerged from his incarceration — he was released halfway through his three-and-a-half year sentence — sufficiently remorseful to be invited to exercise influence again. Lately the idea has strengthened that perhaps Bayern could immediately use the wisdoms of a dynamic, driven executive who oversaw the appointment of the last two head managers at the club: They were Jupp Heynckes, who delivered, in 2013, a first Champions League title in 12 years; and Pep Guardiola, who a majority of European superclubs wanted but who Hoeness persuaded, over dinner in New York, that a German adventure would suit him better than anything else.
The rest is history. Hoeness mostly watched from afar as Guardiola’s Bayern set new standards of domestic superiority, Bundesliga champions at a canter the last three seasons, admired worldwide for the slick, inventive football they played. Three months into the post-Guardiola era, with the Spaniard now at Manchester City, Hoeness has just watched something alarmingly unfamiliar: Two defeats on the trot, the first, 1-0 at Borussia Dortmund last weekend; and, on its heels, 3-2 at Rostov in midweek.
Some context, here. In three seasons under Guardiola, Bayern only once lost successive matches, and it happened only in the May after the first of his league titles had already been won. So the manager who has followed him, Carlo Ancelotti now carries the burden of knowing that, a third of the way through his first campaign with Bayern, he has overseen several things that you have to scroll back a long while to find a precedent for: A run of three fixtures without a win; a certain finish below top spot in their Champions League group; and, almost a third of the way through the Bundesliga calendar, a position in the table that is not first place. They go into today’s tricky home game against Bayer Leverkusen trailing RB Leipzig
Having the firm voice of Hoeness in his ear may or may not become the cause of further anxiety for Ancelotti. Bayern have hardly been short of booming reprimands from the boardroom even in Hoeness’s absence, and the latest setbacks have not gone unremarked by the club’s blazered class. Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, another former player and a long-serving executive, broadcast his displeasure at the loss to Rostov, and focused on one star player. “Jerome Boateng needs to come back down to earth,” Rummenigge told reporters.
Why Boateng, totem of Bayern and Germany’s defence and a footballer whose authority, and indeed creativity as a passer largely flourished under Guardiola? The defender’s performances in the recent Bayern slump have included some errors of judgement, but the criticism was taken by the player as linked to his off-the-field activities. He has not broken any rules but his endeavours to raise his commercial and public profile have been conspicuous, attending red-carpet events, endorsing fashion products and promoting his image in the United States.
Boateng responded to Rumminigge’s words by telling Bild newspaper: “The reasons for any drop in form are nothing do with any PR or lifestyle issues,” he said. “Everybody who knows me knows I give everything to be in top form.” Substituted after an hour in Rostov, Boateng is a fitness doubt for the XI against Leverkusen.
In pinpointing Boateng, and alluding to possible distractions, Rumminigge touched another nerve. If Guardiola’s management style was characterised by its intensity, and the rigid control of his squad, Ancelotti’s is perceived as more laissez-faire. For that, the appointment of the Italian, who guided AC Milan and Real Madrid to Champions League triumphs, and Milan, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain to league wins, was initially deemed welcome.
But a lack of urgency on the pitch has put Ancelotti’s methods under scrutiny. Captain Philipp Lahm, without citing his manager, said: “Our problem is that we are being careless. Things have to change.”
Would having the bullish Hoeness back on the scene make a difference to the players? “I don’t know if it will give us a push,” said Lahm. “But it’s a positive for the future.”
PLAYER OF THE WEEK — Emre Belozoglu, Basaksehir Istanbul
In Italy, he was known as the ‘Maradona of the Bosphorus’, and, at Internazionale, his charmed left foot, peripheral vision and low centre of gravity on occasion lent the comparison validity. And Emre Belozoglu, the Peter Pan of Turkish football, has staying power that even Maradona might envy. Now in his 21st season as a top-flight professional, Emre is eyeing yet another major title.
Itinerant of Istanbul
Emre, 36, will on Saturday lead out, in his umpteenth Istanbul derby, the Turkish league leaders in their top-of-the-table meeting with champions Besiktas. Those leaders? The surprise pacesetters Basaksehir, who Emre, formerly of Galatsasaray and Fenerbahce, has captained through their emergence as a convincing fourth force in the city.
Finesse and fire
It was back in the 1996-97 season that Emre first gave notice of his poise and skill on the ball in senior football, a 16-year-old debutant in a Galatsaray who he helped to barely precedented success. By the time he turned 20, he had won four league titles with Gala, and a Uefa Cup-winners medal, in 2000.
Red mist
By then, it had become evident that there was an edge to his midfield game to go with the nimble dribbles and eye-of-a-needle passes. A red card in the Uefa Cup semi-final denied Emre his place in the triumphant final against Arsenal that year. His total of 93 Turkey caps would be greater but for a ban following his part in a notorious 2005 brawl after a World Cup qualifier against Switzerland. Later in his career, playing for Fenerbahce, he was banned for making racist remarks to an opponent.
Global renown
That is a blemish that stays with Emre, for many years the leading ambassador for Turkish football in a peak period for the national team. He played a key role in the national team’s bronze medal at the 2002 World Cup, and a summer later moved to Serie A, with Inter. There were spells in the Premier League, with Newcastle United, and, briefly, in la Liga, with a resurgent Atletico Madrid.
Title collector
If Emre became a star at Galatsaray, it was with their fierce rivals, Fenerbahce that he established himself as a leader. Domestic Player of the Year in 2010, he won the leagues in each of his two stints with Fener, in 2011 and, after returning from Spain, in 2014. To add another, a seventh of his career, with upstart Basaksehir would draw down the curtain on his career in spectacular style.
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The five new places of worship
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More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
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Concrete and Gold
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List of alleged parties
May 15 2020: PM and Carrie attend 'work meeting' with at
least 17 staff members
May 20 2020: PM and Carrie attend 'bring your own booze'
party
Nov 27 2020: PM gives speech at leaving do for his staff
Dec 10 2020: Staff party held by then-education secretary
Gavin Williamson
Dec 13 2020: PM and Carrie throw a flat party
Dec 14 2020: London mayor candidate Shaun Bailey holds staff party at Conservative
Party headquarters
Dec 15 2020: PM takes part in a staff quiz
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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.
Top 10 most polluted cities
- Bhiwadi, India
- Ghaziabad, India
- Hotan, China
- Delhi, India
- Jaunpur, India
- Faisalabad, Pakistan
- Noida, India
- Bahawalpur, Pakistan
- Peshawar, Pakistan
- Bagpat, India
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Brighton 1
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Tottenham 1
Kane (48)
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.”