Algeria – the country, the football
Geographically, Algeria comes second in the rankings as Africa’s largest country. It is situated near the Mediterranean Sea on the north, and it is bordered by seven countries:
Morocco, Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali, Niger Libya, and Tunisia. Besides, Algeria counts over 35,000,000 inhabitants leaving inside its 2,400,000 km² territory.
No-one less than 20 years of age has ever had the chance to witness Algeria’s 1990 Africa Cup of nations triumph on home soil. In contrast, a two-year-old baby might be able to recall Algeria’s dramatic and heroic qualification into the finals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa which happened in 2009.
It took almost 25 years, an extra game, and a lone goal against the Pharaohs of Egypt for Algeria to reach the finals of the World Cup for the third time in their history of football. How memorable will their adventure in South Africa prove to be?
Algeria – the road to the 2010 FIFA World Cup
Like 48 other nations around Africa, Algeria commenced their 2010 World Cup qualification from the Second Round. The only unusual thing for Africans was that the campaign also included qualification for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in accordance with FIFA and CAF’s new rule.
Second Round
Thrown in Group F, the Desert Foxes – as the national team is called – were among teams like Gambia and Liberia. But Algeria kicked off their joint 2010 Africa Cup of Nations & 2010 World Cup campaign against Senegal in Dakar on May 31, 2008.
It didn’t prove to be a great start as they failed to score and rather succumbed to Diagne-Faye’s goal in the latter stages of the match. But expectedly, Algeria bounced back with a 3-0 victory at home to Liberia in front of 22,000 supporters on June 6th. Whether this score line was fluke or not, the following match eight days later came as another disappointment as they lost 1-0 away to Gambia.
The Desert Foxes however took full advantage of their home factor in the return leg of this tie and subsequently clinched a reverse of their 1-0 defeat to Gambia to put their dreams back on track. They also inflicted sorrow on the Senegalese when they beat them 3-2 in Algeria. In the last game of the Second Round of qualifiers, Algeria drew goalless away to Liberia only to seal a winless record away from home.
Either way, they picked up enough points to finish on top of Group F. They became the only country in that table to grab tickets for the next round.
Third Round
In accordance with the position in the FIFA World Rankings at that point in time (56th), Algeria were drawn in Pot 2 ahead of the draws for the Third Round of qualifiers. They fell in Group C which contained the likes of Rwanda, 2008 African Cup of Nations participants Zambia, and that particular competition’s defending champions, Egypt.
On March 28, Algeria kick started this part of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Their form away had statistically not improved as they could only draw goalless away to Rwanda.
But strong as The Desert Foxes were on home soil, they pulled out a big surprise by stunning Egypt with a 3-1 victory. Algeria’s Matmour, Ghezzal, and Djebbour all scored in the space of 17 minutes after the hour mark to offer no importance of Aboutrika’s 86th minute goal for the visitors.
Then came the moment of joy and relief for Algerians: the Desert Foxes clinched an important 2-0 win against Zambia which marked their first triumph away from home in the qualifiers. Algeria then grabbed their third and fourth consecutive victory in the campaign with wins against Zambia again and then against Rwanda as well.
Ahead of the final match-day of the qualification campaign against Egypt, Algeria were topping Group 3 with 13 points and the goal difference issue explained that they could afford to lose by a single goal margin against Egypt but still reach the finals of the World Cup in South Africa. The battle was always going to be tough and different to the one that they had won in June 2009 against the Pharaohs.
With only two minutes gone down the clock after the referee’s first half blow, Algeria conceded an Amr Zaki goal. However, although they couldn’t find the net, they managed to keep their lines clean until thirty seconds remained in the match.
At every fans’ disappointment, Egypt’s Moteab scored a second goal for his side to give them a lifeline opportunity of reaching South Africa. Algeria’s 2-0 defeat against the Egyptians meant that both teams had to travel to Sudan for a replay.
In Khartoum, it was Algeria’s turn to celebrate at the end of the 90 minutes as Yahia’s 40th minute volley sealed an historic 1-0 victory over the Pharaohs of Egypt. Yahia’s goal, which is now portrayed by many in Algeria as the nation’s most important goal ever in their history of soccer, had subsequently fired The Desert Foxes into the finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Explaining his miraculous goal, goal scorer Antar Yahia made a statement that has now become very popular in Algeria:
"I shot on the ground, he [Egypt's goalkeeper] caught it. I shot it up high, he caught it. I shot it where even the devil could not catch it," and Antar Yahia famously sent his country Algeria to the promised land in South Africa.
Algeria – 2010 FIFA World Cup group stages
In their third World Cup appearance only, Algerians will thank luck for not being drawn along the competition’s most successful nations – Brazil, Italy, and Germany.
However, there will be great mountains to climb as The Desert Foxes will have to affront the likes of Slovenia, England, and the USA all in Group C before standing a chance of reaching the last sixteen of the World Cup.
Match-day One: Algeria vs Slovenia
The 2010 World Cup's sixth match will feature Algeria playing Slovenia in Polokwane at the Peter Mokaba Stadium. Algeria vs Slovenia is scheduled to start at 13:30 South African local time.
It will be Algeria’s first ever World Cup game since their 3-0 defeat in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico on June 12. Algeria would be eager to cheer all of the fans watching back home so the public can expect The Desert Foxes to play with passion and pride.
Match-day Two: England vs Algeria
Cape Town is going to experience some Afro-European flavor when Algeria take on England at 18:30 GMT in the 69,070 capacity crowd Cape Town Stadium. It will be an interesting battle as underdogs Algeria will try and bite The Three Lions from the back.
As much as this encounter could leave Algeria with pain and sorrow, it could uplift them with honor and confidence. Will the North Africans be able to break England’s strength and resilience with a shocking win?
Match-day Three: United States vs Algeria
On the last match-day of Group C, Algeria and the United States will clash up against each other in Pretoria at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium at 14:00 GMT. Only the first two match-days will tell how important this fixture will be for Algeria. The Desert Foxes would want to make history by reaching the next round of the 2010 World Cup tournament.
Beating the 2009 Confederations Cup runners is a possibility as football hides surprises. However, Algeria will certainly be cautious knowing how cruelly the United States defeated another African country – Egypt – on South African soil. (This takes us back to the USA’s astonishing 3-0 demolition of Egypt in the group stages of the 2009 Confederations Cup).
Algeria – 2010 FIFA World Cup squad
Goalkeepers:
M'bohi Rais Ouheb; Faouzi Chaouchi; Lounes Gaouaoui
Defenders:
Djamel Mesbah; Nadir Belhadj; Habib Belaid; Antar Yahia; Rafik Halliche; Carl Medjani; Madjid Bougherra; Abdelkader Laifaoui
Midfielders:
Karim Matmour; Karim Ziani; Fouad Kadir; Djamel Abdoun; Riad Boudebouz; Adlene Guedioura; Yazid Mansouri; Medhi Lacen; Hassan Yebda
Strikers:
Rafik Saifi; Rafik Djebbour; Abdelkader Ghezzal
Algeria – Expectations from the team and its top stars
Almost no one singles out Algeria when it comes to predicting which African country will impress and reach another level at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The Arabic nation can content itself with the name “underdog” and therefore come as the tournament’s surprise package.
It will certainly be difficult for Algeria to qualify from a group that has England and the USA as its favorites to progress. However, Algeria haven’t lost hope and the people of this country keep believing that miracles will happen at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
For Algerians, it should not be that The Desert Foxes’ heroics against Egypt in Khartoum mark their last greatest memory until maybe the year 2014.
Karim Ziani 
Among all the players that are expected to star in Algeria’s squad, Karim Ziani comes as one to watch out for. The little 1.70m tall man is an influential midfielder with a positive thinking tactically. The 2004, 2005, and 2006 DZFoot d’Or award winner is appreciated in his country for his bravery on the pitch.
Despite not being a striker, Karim Ziani emerged as the top scorer for The Desert Foxes in the qualification campaign. The midfielder is expected to work at his full best during the 2010 World Cup as Algeria aim to prove their value as a team that breaks boundaries.
Algeria – Relevant quote
Algeria coach, Rabah Saadane: “It means so much”
“England and the United States may have the advantage but I still think that generally speaking, it is an equal group. It’s hard to predict who will qualify. […]
“We had a good form during the qualifiers in order to advance. Above all however, we have realized a dream. […] To be at a World Cup is absolutely fantastic. The fans back home are in dreamland.
“It means so much.”
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Algeria – FIFA World Cup record
Algeria will be participating in only their third World Cup tournament. The Desert Foxes qualified twice in the 1980s but never quite managed to leave their prints in history.
2010: Qualified
1986, 1982: Round 1
Is 2010 the year when Algeria’s Desert Foxes will rise up to the challenge with heroic performances during the World Cup in South Africa?
To know the answer, remain with LiveSoccerTV.com during the entire 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament! This site will update you with news, video highlights, live commentary, and more from June 11 to July 11 of the year 2009.
