Euro 2016 final: France v Portugal, Sunday July 10, 11pm (UAE time)
Marseille // Euro 2016 was meant to be Paul Pogba's tournament, putting the seal on what could be a world record setting transfer away from Juventus.
But Antoine Griezmann’s match-winning performances against Germany and Iceland have made him the darling of the host nation.
Pogba was expected to light up his maiden European Championship with the silky skills and long-range goals that have become his trademark at the Italian champions.
But he has not produced the goods even though talk of a big money transfer to Manchester United or Real Madrid is mounting.
The world’s most highly-rated midfielder was mediocre in France’s first four games. Pogba nevertheless remains one of the most exciting players around and former France striker Thierry Henry believes the best is yet to come.
“Forget about France, I think he can be one of the best midfielders in history. He has the quality to do that,” Henry told Sky Sports last week.
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Pogba has shown only glimpses of the brilliant skills Juventus fans see each week.
Ahead of Euro 2016, Pogba featured on the front covers of magazines the world over, pledging to “become a legend” and “revolutionise midfield” when France seek to repeat their triumph of winning the 1998 World Cup on home soil.
With the transfer saga being played out in the background, France swept Romania and Albania aside then drew with Switzerland on their way to winning their group. But Pogba seemed absent.
Coach Didier Deschamps punished Pogba for a mediocre display and some unnecessary showboating in the 2-1 defeat of Romania by leaving him on the bench for their second group game against Albania.
In Marseille, Pogba replaced Anthony Martial for the second half when France were rescued by last-gasp goals from Griezmann and Dmitri Payet on their way to a 2-0 win.
Pogba made an arm gesture toward the media tribune celebrating a goal that some speculated was an irreverent gesture.
Pundits and fans debated whether Pogba had told his detractors, in no uncertain terms, where to go.
Deschamps gave him the benefit of the doubt. But former England striker Gary Lineker weighed in on Twitter asking: “Is Pogba the world’s most overrated player?”
It brought a thorny response the Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola, whose portfolio includes Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Mario Balotelli among other top stars.
“When somebody gets paid to give their opinion, that doesn’t mean they know what they are talking about,” Raiola said.
“This is what has happened with Lineker.”
But few could disgree that over France’s opening games, Pogba was ineffective.
Worse, only two minutes into the knockout phase, a clumsy Pogba tackle in the area handed the Irish a penalty. Robbie Brady converted for a second-minute lead, before Les Bleus restored order with Griezmann’s second-half double.
France breathed a sigh of relief as they went through to the quarter-finals and, finally, Pogba came to the fore.
When his bullet header from Griezmann’s corner flew into the Iceland net to give France a 2-0 lead in an eventual 5-2 victory that sealed their semi-final clash with Germany, Pogba was mobbed by teammates.
And although Griezmann stole the show again with a brace of goals in Thursday’s 2-0 win over World Cup holders Germany, it took some fancy footwork from Pogba, and for Manuel Neuer to push his cross into the path of Griezmann, for the little forward to score.
Before the match Henry added: “He needs to make sure he concentrates on what he can do well.”
Ahead of Sunday’s final at the Stade de France, Les Bleus’ fans will be hoping the same.
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Keep it fun and engaging
Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Company%20Profile
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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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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Kill%20
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LUKA CHUPPI
Director: Laxman Utekar
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Cinema
Cast: Kartik Aaryan, Kriti Sanon, Pankaj Tripathi, Vinay Pathak, Aparshakti Khurana
Rating: 3/5
Ready Player One
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Mark Rylance
The biog
Born November 11, 1948
Education: BA, English Language and Literature, Cairo University
Family: Four brothers, seven sisters, two daughters, 42 and 39, two sons, 43 and 35, and 15 grandchildren
Hobbies: Reading and traveling
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum