PASADENA, CALIFORNIA // Just a few days into Louis Van Gaal’s latest high-profile job, the media are wasting no time exposing him to the lofty expectations at Manchester United.
Nor is the 62-year-old Dutchman wasting any time exposing the media to his own hardened approach.
“The pressure I put on myself is much bigger than what you can do,” Van Gaal said.
Match on.
His first week on the job has brought him to greater Los Angeles, where his club begin their preseason schedule Wednesday with a friendly against LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
Read more: Manchester United ‘invading’ America like The Beatles before them
His pre-match duties included a 15-minute press conference Tuesday in which he answered a variety of questions from a group of around 40 reporters, and several dozen photographers and television cameras.
This part of the world – best known for a century-old college American football game and a New Year’s Day parade – may be tepid in its appreciation for Van Gaal’s sport, but the heat surrounding Old Trafford has followed him here, anyway.
No matter that he is still introducing himself to his players. Already he is being asked about transfers to fill holes, whether Javier Hernandez, a late addition to the travelling party, will stick with the team, and if the club will keep to a philosophy of developing young talent.
Mostly Van Gaal asked for time.
“At this moment, I can’t say anything about that,” he said when asked what areas he was pinpointing in the pursuit of more players. “I want to learn my players. I want to see how they perform.
“I want all the players to have a chance to show themselves.”
United operate in a high-pressure environment anyway, but this year the squeeze is a bit tighter. A humbling seventh-place finish, their worst in 25 years, in the English Premier League, which left them out of the Champions League, cost Van Gaal’s predecessor, David Moyes, his position after a mere 10 months.
Humility may be a heavenly virtue, but United want no part of it. Mediocrity is not an option at arguably the world’s most recognised sports team, backed by a huge financial operation that recently added Adidas and Chevrolet as major sponsors.
Van Gaal will be expected to clean up the mess quickly. His credentials, of course, are impressive: two stints with Barcelona, another with Bayern Munich, twice the manager of the Netherlands, who finished third at Brazil 2014 earlier this month.
The media, in general, may be approving of his hire, but they will watch him through a microscope as he deals with everything from the team’s performance to his ability to handle United’s travelling circus.
As newly signed Luke Shaw, the 19-year-old left-back, said Tuesday, “When I first turned up at Manchester United, everyone told me how big it is. But until you tour, you don’t understand just how big the fan base is. It’s crazy.”
Van Gaal already seems miffed at United’s pre-season schedule in the United States, which includes at least three more games in the International Champions Cup against Roma (in Denver on Saturday), Inter Milan (in Maryland next Tuesday) and Real Madrid (in Michigan on August 2). If they win their group, that means a final game, in Miami on August 4. Or put another way, United could have five matches in 13 days, broken up by four flights covering more than 6,300 kilometres – and not including the two leaps over the Atlantic.
“When you have a lot of commercial obligations, you have to fly a lot, you have jet lag,” he said. “This is not good for preparations. But Manchester United will do everything to adapt to my rules.”
Including, apparently, agreeing to a less demanding pre-season schedule next summer.
“They have already said that to me,” said Van Gaal. “I am confident the tour will be shorter.”
His immediate concern, of course, is whipping a team into shape in four weeks. His back line has lost three veteran players (captain Nemanja Vidic, Patrice Evra and Rio Ferdinand) in the off-season, from a side that in 2013/14 often lacked defensive organisation.
Despite the club’s ability to purchase pieces as Van Gaal sees fit, the new manager claims it isn’t as easy as opening up the check book.
“There are a lot of clubs capable of playing at a high level,” he said. “The financial situation – the teams in the Premier League have a much better chance to buy players. It is much more difficult than in the Netherlands or in Germany where not many clubs can give out the money.”
Not that the Old Trafford community, nor the travelling media, will care what the difficulty is. Only that Van Gaal pushes this weighty franchise back to the top.
sports@thenational.ae
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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.
Profile of Hala Insurance
Date Started: September 2018
Founders: Walid and Karim Dib
Based: Abu Dhabi
Employees: Nine
Amount raised: $1.2 million
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, AB Accelerator, 500 Startups, private backers
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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Afcon 2019
SEMI-FINALS
Senegal v Tunisia, 8pm
Algeria v Nigeria, 11pm
Matches are live on BeIN Sports
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
SPECS
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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Pakistan v New Zealand Test series
Pakistan: Sarfraz (c), Hafeez, Imam, Azhar, Sohail, Shafiq, Azam, Saad, Yasir, Asif, Abbas, Hassan, Afridi, Ashraf, Hamza
New Zealand: Williamson (c), Blundell, Boult, De Grandhomme, Henry, Latham, Nicholls, Ajaz, Raval, Sodhi, Somerville, Southee, Taylor, Wagner
Umpires: Bruce Oxerford (AUS) and Ian Gould (ENG); TV umpire: Paul Reiffel (AUS); Match referee: David Boon (AUS)
Tickets and schedule: Entry is free for all spectators. Gates open at 9am. Play commences at 10am
A Dog's Journey
Directed by: Gail Mancuso
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Josh Gad, Marg Helgenberger, Betty Gilpin, Kathryn Prescott
3 out of 5 stars
UNSC Elections 2022-23
Seats open:
- Two for Africa Group
- One for Asia-Pacific Group (traditionally Arab state or Tunisia)
- One for Latin America and Caribbean Group
- One for Eastern Europe Group
Countries so far running:
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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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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Gulf rugby
Who’s won what so far in 2018/19
Western Clubs Champions League: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens: Dubai Hurricanes
West Asia Premiership: Bahrain
What’s left
UAE Conference
March 22, play-offs:
Dubai Hurricanes II v Al Ain Amblers, Jebel Ali Dragons II v Dubai Tigers
March 29, final
UAE Premiership
March 22, play-offs:
Dubai Exiles v Jebel Ali Dragons, Abu Dhabi Harlequins v Dubai Hurricanes
March 29, final