PARIS: Lionel Messi apologized to Paris Saint-Germain and his teammates on Friday for going to Saudi Arabia on an unauthorized trip that resulted in his suspension.
Messi posted a short video on Instagram to ask for forgiveness and chalk up the controversy to a scheduling misunderstanding.
He missed practice on Monday while he was on a promotional trip to Saudi Arabia, and a day later the French club announced they suspended the World Cup winner.
Messi said he thought the team had Monday off.
“Hello, I wanted to make this video about what is happening. First of all, ask for forgiveness from my teammates and the club. Honestly, I thought we were going to have an off day as it had been the case in the weeks prior. I had this trip to organized, which I had canceled before, and this time I couldn’t cancel. Again, ask for forgiveness from what I did and I will be waiting for whatever the club decides. Hugs.”
Earlier on Friday, coach Christophe Galtier said the club and Messi will wait until the end of his suspension to discuss how he finishes the season.
Messi is not expected to extend his contract, and there are only five games remaining.
Galtier was asked at a news conference if he’ll be able to count on Messi returning to the field after the suspension.
“We’ll see when Leo returns what will happen,” Galtier said. “Obviously, there will be discussions with the entire club but also with Leo, who is the primary person involved.”
The club haven’t confirmed the length of the Argentina great’s suspension but French media reported it to be two weeks, which would mean he’d miss two games. PSG has a five-point lead over second-placed Marseille in Ligue 1.
Galtier said the club told him that Messi was suspended, and he declined to say if he endorsed the decision.
“I did not have to make the decision,” the coach said. “I was informed of the decision.”
Messi joined PSG in 2021 after winning every major honor with Barcelona. The Catalan club that Messi called home from the age of 13 couldn’t afford to keep him because of large debts and Spanish league financial regulations.
The French club and their fans hoped Messi’s arrival would result in an elusive Champions League title. Instead, the Qatari-backed club were eliminated in the round of 16 in consecutive seasons.
Messi was welcomed into Paris with a police escort. His exit is sure to be less glorious. Reports have linked Messi to Inter Miami in Major League Soccer, a return to Barcelona, and a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia.
Some PSG fans are also urging forward Neymar to leave the club.
For Galtier, though, fans crossed the line when they protested outside the Brazil international’s residence this week.
“Private life must remain private,” he said. “I can understand the anger, the disappointment of our fans. I can understand protesting here at our workplace, in front of PSG’s headquarters, after a match at Parc des Princes.”
But going to private homes is “out of control and dangerous,” he said.
Neymar had season-ending surgery on his right ankle in March.
Messi apologizes to PSG for unapproved Saudi Arabia trip
https://arab.news/m6u5t
Messi apologizes to PSG for unapproved Saudi Arabia trip
- Messi posted a short video on Instagram to ask for forgiveness and chalk up the controversy to a scheduling misunderstanding
- He missed practice on Monday while he was on a promotional trip to Saudi Arabia, and a day later the French club announced they suspended the World Cup winner
ICC shortlists Pakistan’s Shaheen Afridi, UAE’s Waseem for Player of the Month award
- Shaheen Shah Afridi took eight wickets in last month’s T20I home series against New Zealand
- UAE’s Mohammad Waseem smashed 56-ball century in last month’s ACC Premier Cup final
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s pace sensation Shaheen Shah Afridi and UAE batter Muhammad Waseem have been shortlisted for the ICC Player of the Month award for April 2024, the International Cricket Council (ICC) reported on Monday, after the left-arm bowler’s string of impressive performances against New Zealand last month.
Afridi led Pakistan’s pace attack against New Zealand in a home T20I series against the Black Caps in April. Pakistan failed to win the series against a second-string New Zealand squad but drew 2-2 against Michael Bracewell’s squad.
The left-arm pacer, however, played a key role in Pakistan’s victories in two of the five matches played between the teams.
The second T20I saw Afridi blitz through the Blackcaps batting lineup, taking three for 13 as Pakistan registered a dominant victory. Then, trailing in the series for the fifth and final contest, Afridi once again wreaked havoc, taking four for 30 to salvage the series draw. Eight wickets in the series at an average of 10.00 saw Afridi walk away with the Player of the Series prize.
“Shaheen picked up the only wicket in the rain-affected opening match of the series with the Kiwis and then followed that up with two eye-catching efforts in the second and fifth games of the series in Rawalpindi and Lahore,” the ICC said in a report.
“Eight wickets in the series at an average of 10.00 saw Afridi walk away with the Player of the Series prize.”
UAE’s pinch-hitter Waseem is also among the three nominees from the men’s category after scoring bulk runs at the ACC Premier Cup and helping himself to a third T20I century in April. Waseem started the month with a first-ball duck against Kuwait before the 30-year-old quickly found form at the top of the UAE batting order as he helped himself to innings of 65, 45 and 48 in three consecutive matches.
“But Waseem’s highlight of the month came in the final of the ACC Premier Cup as he smashed six fours and a whopping seven sixes in making his third T20I century from just 56 deliveries and helping UAE to an impressive 55-run triumph over Oman,” the ICC said.
Namibia’s Gerhard Erasmus is the third nominee shortlisted by the ICC for his impressive performances during the team’s tour of Oman in April.
Erasmus produced two Player of the Match performances over the course of the five-match T20I series, with his first one coming in a narrow six-run loss in the second game of the series when the versatile all-rounder hit 58 from 56 deliveries and backed that up with a spell that netted 3/7.
However, in the decisive fifth match, Erasmus smashed six sixes when scoring a quickfire 64 from 29 deliveries and then made a pair of crucial breakthroughs as Namibia clinched the series with an emphatic 62-run triumph.
Afridi, who has 81 wickets from 61 T20Is, will be Pakistan’s pace attack leader as the green shirts take on Ireland and England in two away series this month. Pakistan will then head to the US and West Indies where they are scheduled to compete in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.
Saudi Arabia’s Ades secures $136.2m deals in Qatar, Egypt
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Ades Holding Co. continues to expand its regional footprint as it seals two contracts worth SR511 million ($136.2 million), highlighting its growing influence in the oil and gas sector.
Ades, which specializes in providing drilling and intervention services, signed a contract valued at up to SR350 million with Total Energies to operate an offshore drilling platform in Qatar.
The agreement includes a mandatory one-year period with an option to extend it for up to an additional 18 months, according to a bourse filing.
Operations are slated to begin in the second half of 2024. The company emphasized that there are no related parties involved in this contract.
This contract comes on the heels of April’s announcement, where Ades was awarded the responsibility to operate another offshore drilling platform by Total Energies in Qatar.
This previous contract enables Ades to maintain its market presence robustly, as it will now operate three drilling platforms in the region.
This expansion comes after the company’s strategic move to transfer its Emerald Driller platform to Indonesia.
Moreover, Ades announced in a separate release that it was awarded a 21-month contract to operate an elevated platform in the Gulf of Suez.
The company received a direct award letter from the Suez Oil Co, also known as SUCO, in Egypt, with operations expected to commence in the coming weeks.
In a statement on Tadawul, the company disclosed that the contract is valued at SR161 million.
This new engagement in Egypt is part of Ades’s broader strategy to reactivate its operations regionally. It follows recent contracts in Thailand and Qatar, bringing the total number of reactivated platforms to three out of the five that were recently suspended in Saudi Arabia.
The publicly traded company saw a slight decrease in its stock price after its announcements.
Aid groups issue urgent appeal for Yemen funds
- UN agencies warned that 18.2 million people in need of help after nine years of war
Dubai: Nearly 200 aid groups appealed on Monday for funds to bridge a $2.3 billion shortfall in assistance for war-torn Yemen, warning of potentially “catastrophic consequences” for the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest country.
A joint statement from 188 humanitarian organizations, including several UN agencies, warned that 18.2 million people — more than half the population — were in need of help after nine years of war.
Their appeal came a day before a meeting of high-ranking EU officials in Brussels to discuss the aid program for Yemen, which is suffering one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
“Inaction would have catastrophic consequences for the lives of Yemeni women, children and men,” the statement said, calling Tuesday’s meeting a “critical moment.”
“The humanitarian community appeals to donors to urgently address existing funding gaps, and provide sustainable support to enhance resilience and reduce aid dependency.”
Yemen has been gripped by conflict since the Iran-backed Houthis overran the capital Sanaa in 2014, triggering the Saudi-led military intervention in support of the government the following year.
Hundreds of thousands have died in the fighting or from indirect causes such as a lack of food, the United Nations says.
Hostilities slowed considerably in April 2022, when a six-month, UN-brokered ceasefire came into effect, and they have remained at a low level since.
But only $435 million of the $2.7 billion called for in Yemen’s 2024 Humanitarian Response Plan requirement has been raised, the aid groups said, warning of threats including food insecurity, cholera and unexploded ordnance.
“Underfunding poses a challenge to the continuity of humanitarian programming, causing delays, reductions and suspensions of lifesaving assistance programs,” it said.
“These challenges directly affect the lives of millions who depend on humanitarian assistance and protection services for survival.”
Saudi government assets to remain strong through 2030: S&P Global
RIYADH: The Saudi government’s assets are forecasted to remain strong amid steady economic diversification efforts aimed at reducing the Kingdom’s dependence on oil, stated a new report.
According to S&P Global, the increasing debt issuance to fund Vision 2030 projects may exert pressure on Saudi Arabia’s net asset position until the end of the decade. However, the Kingdom will mitigate this impact through its wise and prudent fiscal policies.
“S&P Global Ratings expects that growing debt issuance to finance Vision 2030 projects could pressure the sovereign’s fiscal metrics. In our base case, however, we expect the government’s net asset position will deteriorate but remain strong,” stated the credit-rating agency.
It added: “The ramp-up in fiscal deficits and debt could weaken the government’s balance sheet far sooner than returns on investment will accrue. Much will depend on the roles that foreign investment, the private sector, and capital markets will play in financing Vision 2030.”
According to the report, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, spearheading the Kingdom’s economic diversification efforts, aims to invest $40 billion annually in the local economy to bolster Vision 2030 goals.
The US-based firm highlighted that the Saudi government will continue to support the Public Investment Fund in various ways, including funding essential infrastructure for mega and giga project sites.
Domestic banks to play key role
Furthermore, S&P Global added that the Saudi government and PIF will try to boost external funding and diversify the investor base to mitigate the impact on domestic banks’ liquidity.
“We expect domestic banks will still play a key role in funding the public and corporate sectors, given the large size of projects. Domestic banks will likely see a shift from mortgage lending toward corporate lending and Vision 2030 project funding,” noted the credit rating agency.
However, the report added that the Kingdom’s banking system alone cannot accommodate all the financing needs associated with Vision 2030.
Banks in Saudi Arabia will use alternative strategies, such as raising additional external funding, to meet the increasing credit demand.
“In 2023, Saudi banks injected almost $55 billion in the form of investments and financing in the public and corporate sectors, excluding financing to the retail sector. In 2024, we expect banks will grow their lending book by 8 percent to 9 percent,” said S&P Global.
It added: “Under the assumption that 70 percent of that lending is for corporates, banks can inject $40 billion to $44 billion in financing. A portion of that could be used in Vision 2030.”
The report projected an approximate 8 percent increase in deposits for 2024, with external debt issuance expected to reach around $10 billion to facilitate anticipated lending growth.
Earlier this month, another analysis by the agency underscored the robust condition of the Saudi banking sector, highlighting strong asset-quality indicators and overall capitalization.
S&P Global further noted its expectation for banks’ solid profitability and conservative dividend payouts to sustain their capitalization over the next one-to-two years.
The report also noted that Saudi banks have already accessed international capital markets, a trend the credit-rating agency expects to persist for the next three to five years.
Furthermore, the Saudi government and its related entities are anticipated to inject deposits into the banking system, thereby bolstering the credit growth of financial institutions in the Kingdom.
Public and private investment
S&P Global also predicted that certain Vision 2030 projects will extend beyond this decade, facilitating a more organic increase in economic activity and foreign investment.
While PIF and the government will persist in debt-financed investment for Vision 2030, other government-related entities, including portfolio companies of the wealth fund, private-sector participants, and foreign direct investment, will also play crucial roles in implementing economic diversification projects in the Kingdom.
The report underscored that FDI inflows have averaged around 2 percent of Saudi Arabia’s gross domestic product over the past three years, with the Kingdom aiming to increase this to 5.7 percent by 2030.
According to S&P Global, the opening of free economic zones and the regional headquarters program could expedite the growth of FDI inflows in the coming years.
“Future FDI inflows could offer upside on the back of growing investment opportunities and government efforts to improve regulatory and business conditions. These efforts include the opening of free economic zones and a 30-year tax break for multinational companies opening regional headquarters in the country,” added the agency.
It underscored the role of the Saudi capital market in catalyzing the Kingdom’s economic diversification efforts.
The report highlighted that the Saudi exchange is collaborating closely with the Capital Markets Authority to streamline processes and attract both local and international issuers by enhancing market functionality and efficiency.
These initiatives by Tadawul will ultimately enhance the appeal of debt and equity transactions on capital markets and facilitate a more diversified funding base for Vision 2030 projects.
It also noted that the Saudi government possesses additional assets it could leverage to support Vision 2030 and prevent an expanding debt bubble. This includes an 82 percent stake in Saudi Aramco, which boasts a market capitalization exceeding $7 trillion.
“The government has thus far transferred a total 16 percent stake in Saudi Aramco to the PIF and its subsidiaries, which has substantially added to the PIF’s asset base, leading to dividend returns that it can deploy toward Vision 2030 projects. The government could choose to sell further stakes in Aramco through an IPO (initial public offering) to raise additional financing,” added the agency.
Pakistan top court suspends verdict denying reserved parliamentary seats to Khan-backed party
- Under election rules, parties are allotted reserved seats in proportion to number of parliamentary seats they win in polls
- Election Commission ruled in March Khan-backed SIC was not eligible for reserved seats, Peshawar High Court upheld ruling
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court on Monday suspended a verdict by the Peshawar High Court (PHC) that a party aligned with candidates backed by former premier Imran Khan was not eligible for reserved seats in the legislature, a blow for the country’s coalition government headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party couldn’t contest the Feb. 8 elections under its traditional electoral symbol, a cricket bat, which it was denied on technical grounds. The PTI subsequently struck an alliance with another party, the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), in a bid to secure reserved seats for women and minorities in parliament.
Under Pakistan’s election rules, political parties are allotted reserved seats in proportion to the number of parliamentary seats they win in the election. This completes the National Assembly’s total strength of 336 seats.
The Election Commission had ruled in March that the SIC was not eligible for reserved seats, a decision the alliance had appealed in the PHC, which also rejected it. The SIC then approached the Supreme Court to appeal the high court’s decision.
A three-member bench of the top court took up the SIC’s petition for hearing on Monday.
“The Supreme Court has suspended the Election Commission’s order and the Peshawar High Court’s order,” PTI Chairman Gohar Khan, who is also Khan’s lawyer, told reporters outside the top court after it rejected the PHC verdict. “This is a vindication of our stance.”
He said the Supreme Court had also barred members of other political parties elected on reserved seats that should have been allotted to the SIC from casting their votes for or against any legislation.
The PTI leader said the SIC had been deprived of 67 reserved seats for women and 11 parliamentary seats for minorities. After losing 78 reserved seats, PM Sharif’s coalition government had lost its two-thirds majority, he added.
Khan, who is in jail following a string of convictions, and his PTI say the party was stripped of its bat symbol as a ruse to undermine its popularity and keep it from winning a maximum number of seats in general elections.
In February, an agreement between Bhutto Zardari’s Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of three-time Premier Nawaz Sharif ended days of uncertainty and negotiations after the Feb. 8 elections produced a hung national assembly.
The PML-N’s 79 and the PPP’s 54 seats together made a simple majority in parliament to form a government and they also roped in smaller parties in the coalition.
Candidates backed by Khan won 93 seats but did not have the numbers to form a government. He and his party have rejected the results of the elections, alleging widespread rigging.
