Steven Gerrard shown at an England training session on Friday ahead of their World Cup 2014 opener against Italy on Saturday. Themba Hadebe / AP / June 13, 2014
Steven Gerrard shown at an England training session on Friday ahead of their World Cup 2014 opener against Italy on Saturday. Themba Hadebe / AP / June 13, 2014

Football

Liverpool’s Gerrard, ready for World Cup, ‘moved on’ from slip v Chelsea

'I am in a great place mentally, physically' says Steven Gerrard ahead of England's World Cup Group D opener against Italy on Saturday.

Associated Press

June 14, 2014

Many footballers would struggle to recover from a lapse that cost his team the league title. After a difficult few weeks, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard's mind is clear of the anguish and ready to lead England at the World Cup.
"I have moved on," Gerrard said ahead of Saturday's Group D opener against Italy. "I am in a great place mentally, physically, I feel strong and I believe I can go and perform."
Less than two months ago, Liverpool had one hand on the Premier League trophy until Gerrard slipped in a crucial game against Chelsea and the London club went on to win at Anfield. Manchester City then edged Liverpool to the title by two points.
"It drove me mad for a few nights, a few weeks, it was a big moment and went against me," Gerrard recalled. "It would have driven me crazier if it was a mistake and I had lost a man at a corner or not prepared properly.
"If I made a genuine error that was my fault I would have struggled to recover from it, but everyone in the world has slipped. Whether it is on a football pitch, a curb or a wet floor. It is one of those things that you cannot control. It is a freak incident that happens."
Given Gerrard's contribution in midfield throughout the season, thriving in a deeper role, you'd struggle to find anyone in Liverpool blaming him.
"My form over the whole season got stronger and stronger and certainly when I move back into the controlling role I have been really happy with my form and my consistency," Gerrard said. "It has been up there with some of the best football I have played. Of course what happened against Chelsea was a setback for me personally but when you play at the top you are under pressure every single game."
And in the pressure cauldron, mistakes happen.
"I am human, I am normal," he said. "I haven't been too hard on myself. I would rather be in the position to be shot down than be underneath and out of the way; underneath the level of the Premier League and underneath international football. I would much rather be out there and take the responsibility to be shot down."
At 34, Gerrard is the father figure in the England squad, the leader on the pitch and in the dressing room. In South Africa four years ago, Gerrard only wore the captain's armband by default because Rio Ferdinand injured his knee during England's first training session.
"I feel like the real captain now of this group," Gerrard said.
And if Gerrard plays the three group stage games and England reaches the round of 16, Gerrard will win his 115th cap, matching David Beckham's appearance record for an outfield player. The focus now is on Italy, and making a winning start in the humidity of Manaus before facing Uruguay and Costa Rica.
"The key is just to not come off the pitch with any regrets," he said. "We have to be cute, clever and experienced. Yes, we can go and attack and show tempo, pace and try and hunt them down and win the ball.
"But will be times in the game when it will be tough on the legs and tough on the lungs and we are going to have to get the shout out for the squad to be close, narrow and hard to beat. That is just common sense."
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'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai, 
HBKU Press 

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.”