Lviv, Ukraine // Arjen Robben admits Bayern Munich have a few nerves as they head to the war-torn Ukraine for Tuesday’s Uefa Champions League last 16, first-leg, clash away to Shakhtar Donetsk.
Due to fighting in east Ukraine between government forces and pro-Russian rebels, Shakhtar host their home league games in Kiev, but have opted to play their Champions League matches in Lviv, near the Poland border.
They will host Bayern at Arena Lviv, some 1000 kilometres from their own Donbass Stadium in Donetsk, which is being used to distribute humanitarian aid and whose facade has been damaged by shelling.
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Pep Guardiola’s star-studded Bayern squad head east fully aware it’s far from a typical away match, just days after romping to a record 8-0 rout of Hamburg on Saturday.
“Of course you are aware of the situation, it affects us all,” said Robben, who scored twice against Hamburg.
“You can’t just go there and ignore what is going on.”
Bayern fly to Lviv from Munich at 1445 local time on Monday and are scheduled to head back at 0030 on Wednesday morning.
Less than 36 hours on Ukraine soil means the German champions want to spend as little time there as possible and they have cancelled their usual post-match banquet.
Guardiola has admitted he is “concerned about the situation in Ukraine”, while chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said the ceasefire over the weekend “has made the whole thing a bit more relaxed for us”.
European football’s governing body UEFA insist there is nothing to worry about.
“The safety of all participants is guaranteed,” a UEFA spokeswoman told SID, an AFP subsidiary.
Bayern warmed-up by hammering Hamburg in Munich as Robben, Thomas Mueller and Mario Geotze each scored a brace.
It was the visitors’ heaviest league defeat and the league’s biggest victory for 30 years.
Bayern rested Spain midfielder Xabi Alonso, who had a leg injury, and were also without suspended Germany defender Jerome Boateng against Hamburg, but both are expected to face Donetsk.
With the Ukraine Premier League still in a winter break, Shakhtar will come into the game short of competitive match practice and having only played friendlies in Brazil and Spain during recent training camps.
Their last competitive game was a 1-1 draw at Porto on December 10 in their final Champions League group game.
They are second in the Ukraine Premier League table, five points behind leaders Dynamo Kiev, and in danger of missing out on a sixth straight league title.
While Bayern won their group with two matches to spare, Donetsk finished second behind Porto in their pool, but still managed to make Champions League history.
They posted a 7-0 away win at BATE Borisov when Brazil striker Luiz Adriano, their top scorer for the last five seasons, finished with five goals.
He has scored nine goals from just 11 attempts in the group stages.
The result made Champions League history as Shakhtar became the first team to romp to a 6-0 half-time lead.
“Bayern are still in a different rhythm of the game. They play matches every three to four days, whereas we played several friendly matches during a month-and-half,” Adriano told Shakhtar’s official website.
Donetsk will be without midfielder Taras Stepanenko, who is serving a one-match suspension having been booked three times in the group stage.
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
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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.”
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Anxiety and work stress major factors
Anxiety, work stress and social isolation are all factors in the recogised rise in mental health problems.
A study UAE Ministry of Health researchers published in the summer also cited struggles with weight and illnesses as major contributors.
Its authors analysed a dozen separate UAE studies between 2007 and 2017. Prevalence was often higher in university students, women and in people on low incomes.
One showed 28 per cent of female students at a Dubai university reported symptoms linked to depression. Another in Al Ain found 22.2 per cent of students had depressive symptoms - five times the global average.
It said the country has made strides to address mental health problems but said: “Our review highlights the overall prevalence of depressive symptoms and depression, which may long have been overlooked."
Prof Samir Al Adawi, of the department of behavioural medicine at Sultan Qaboos University in Oman, who was not involved in the study but is a recognised expert in the Gulf, said how mental health is discussed varies significantly between cultures and nationalities.
“The problem we have in the Gulf is the cross-cultural differences and how people articulate emotional distress," said Prof Al Adawi.
“Someone will say that I have physical complaints rather than emotional complaints. This is the major problem with any discussion around depression."
Daniel Bardsley
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More on animal trafficking
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
What are NFTs?
Are non-fungible tokens a currency, asset, or a licensing instrument? Arnab Das, global market strategist EMEA at Invesco, says they are mix of all of three.
You can buy, hold and use NFTs just like US dollars and Bitcoins. “They can appreciate in value and even produce cash flows.”
However, while money is fungible, NFTs are not. “One Bitcoin, dollar, euro or dirham is largely indistinguishable from the next. Nothing ties a dollar bill to a particular owner, for example. Nor does it tie you to to any goods, services or assets you bought with that currency. In contrast, NFTs confer specific ownership,” Mr Das says.
This makes NFTs closer to a piece of intellectual property such as a work of art or licence, as you can claim royalties or profit by exchanging it at a higher value later, Mr Das says. “They could provide a sustainable income stream.”
This income will depend on future demand and use, which makes NFTs difficult to value. “However, there is a credible use case for many forms of intellectual property, notably art, songs, videos,” Mr Das says.
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
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Price: Dh136,814
Movie: Saheb, Biwi aur Gangster 3
Producer: JAR Films
Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Jimmy Sheirgill, Mahie Gill, Chitrangda Singh, Kabir Bedi
Rating: 3 star
