Are the Desert Foxes of Algeria ready to take on the mission that awaits them during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa? Any Algerian fan would like to think that they are, but perhaps the answer is different in truth.
The Fennecs were slapped with three goals to nil by the Republic of Ireland a few days back. They failed to the pressure of the home side from start to finish and were also poor in defending set pieces. There’s certainly room for improvement in Algeria’s squad ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament. However, Karim Ziani explained that Algeria’s form in South Africa will have nothing to do with their form in friendly matches.
In a bold statement to Al Heddaf, the play maker declared:
“I prefer to lose friendly matches and then get good results in official games. Many teams have lost friendly matches and then succeeded at the World Cup. There’s no need to overdramatize things after this defeat. After all, we are in the middle of our preparations for the World Cup,
“We will be better during the World Cup. Things will change. You cannot judge us based on this friendly [against the Republic of Ireland] only.”
Karim Ziani also singled out the absence of key players Bougherra and Yahia for their awful result against the Irish before defining friendly encounters as an opportunity for the Algerian national football team to learn how to fight without the squad’s top names. The United Arab Emirates may give Algeria a tough time on Saturday.
