AFCON 2021 Preview: Algeria

The 2019 AFCON Champions Algeria are one of the favorites to lift the trophy in 2021. The North African side won the Arab Cup recently and have progressed to the last 10 of the World Cup qualifiers. A team filled with stars and young prospects; Algeria will not be an easy outfit for anyone they face. Ahead of the tournament in Cameroon, we at Soccer Ethiopia spoke to Algerian football journalist Walid Ziani.

– Will anything other than a trophy be a disappointment for Algeria? What are you expecting from them?

No, although we are favorites and would love to repeat as champions, I think the ultimate objective of the coach and the players is to qualify for the World Cup. I’m sure they will give it their all during this African Cup but if they don’t win, I don’t think it will be considered a disappointment. With that being said, anything less than a quarter-final appearance will be a disappointment.

– Tell us about the coach and playing style.

Djamel Belmadi took over as Algeria coach in mid-2018 and has completely transformed the Algeria national team. He led Algeria to the 2019 Africa Cup title and is currently on a 33-match unbeaten streak. Although he’s a strict disciplinarian on and off the pitch, he has a special bond with his players and has been able to bring the most out of them.

The playing style has not changed much since he has taken over. His preferred formation is a 4-3-2-1 with 1 defensive midfielder, 2 central midfielders, 2 wingers, and a striker. He’s also played with a 4-4-2 with 2 strikers depending on the opponent and players available. He’s a very pragmatic coach but also very demanding tactically from his players, including his stars like Riyad Mahrez.

– Who are you expecting to shine for Algeria in this tournament? Is anyone other than Mahrez?

Youcef Belaili was one of Algeria’s most influential players in the 2019 African Cup and I tip him to do the same again this time around. Among the new players, look out for Ramiz Zerrouki and Adem Zorgane, 2 younger central midfielders who can be breakout players during this tournament.

– Which team do you think will be the toughest competitor?

Our 3rd group stage match against Ivory Coast will be a very tough test. We beat them in the QFs in 2019 and the Elephants will be very hungry to get their revenge, especially since they were eliminated from the World Cup qualifiers. 2019 finalists Senegal will also be one of the favorites to lift the title, and you can never count out the hosts Cameroon and giants Nigeria.

– Also, what areas of the team are of concern to you and most Algerians.

Despite our recent success, there’s still a lot of question marks about the team after some underwhelming performances in recent games, namely the 2 draws against Burkina Faso. From the back to the front, goalkeeping, defense, defensive midfield, and striker(s). There’s a lot of questions going into AFCON.

EthPL

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Round 1
1 Oct 2023 15:00
ADAMA
-
-
CBE
1 Oct 2023 18:00
SIDAMA
-
-
BUNNA
2 Oct 2023 15:00
SHASHE
-
-
DICHA
2 Oct 2023 18:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
DIRE
3 Oct 2023 15:00
HAWASSA
-
-
FASIL
3 Oct 2023 18:00
HOSSANA
-
-
MECHAL
4 Oct 2023 15:00
KDG
-
-
WOLKITE
4 Oct 2023 18:00
MEDIN
-
-
BDR
Round 2
12 Oct 2023 15:00
DIRE
-
-
BUNNA
12 Oct 2023 18:00
CBE
-
-
HOSSANA
13 Oct 2023 15:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
KDG
13 Oct 2023 18:00
FASIL
-
-
MEDIN
14 Oct 2023 15:00
WOLKITE
-
-
SIDAMA
14 Oct 2023 18:00
DICHA
-
-
ADAMA
15 Oct 2023 15:00
BDR
-
-
MECHAL
15 Oct 2023 18:00
SHASHE
-
-
HAWASSA
Round 3
19 Oct 2023 15:00
MEDIN
-
-
DICHA
19 Oct 2023 18:00
SIDAMA
-
-
FASIL
20 Oct 2023 15:00
HOSSANA
-
-
WOLKITE
20 Oct 2023 18:00
KDG
-
-
SHASHE
21 Oct 2023 15:00
MECHAL
-
-
CBE
21 Oct 2023 18:00
HAWASSA
-
-
DIRE
22 Oct 2023 15:00
ADAMA
-
-
HAMBERICHO
22 Oct 2023 18:00
BUNNA
-
-
BDR
Round 4
26 Oct 2023 15:00
SHASHE
-
-
SIDAMA
26 Oct 2023 18:00
DIRE
-
-
CBE
27 Oct 2023 15:00
HAWASSA
-
-
MEDIN
27 Oct 2023 18:00
WOLKITE
-
-
BDR
28 Oct 2023 15:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
HOSSANA
28 Oct 2023 18:00
KDG
-
-
ADAMA
29 Oct 2023 15:00
FASIL
-
-
BUNNA
29 Oct 2023 18:00
DICHA
-
-
MECHAL
Round 5
2 Nov 2023 15:00
HOSSANA
-
-
SHASHE
2 Nov 2023 18:00
CBE
-
-
WOLKITE
3 Nov 2023 15:00
ADAMA
-
-
DIRE
3 Nov 2023 18:00
MECHAL
-
-
HAMBERICHO
4 Nov 2023 15:00
SIDAMA
-
-
HAWASSA
4 Nov 2023 18:00
MEDIN
-
-
KDG
5 Nov 2023 15:00
BDR
-
-
FASIL
5 Nov 2023 18:00
BUNNA
-
-
DICHA
Round 6
7 Dec 2023 15:00
DIRE
-
-
DICHA
7 Dec 2023 18:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
FASIL
8 Dec 2023 15:00
MEDIN
-
-
MECHAL
8 Dec 2023 18:00
SHASHE
-
-
WOLKITE
9 Dec 2023 15:00
KDG
-
-
BDR
9 Dec 2023 18:00
SIDAMA
-
-
HOSSANA
10 Dec 2023 15:00
ADAMA
-
-
BUNNA
10 Dec 2023 18:00
HAWASSA
-
-
CBE
Round 7
14 Dec 2023 15:00
WOLKITE
-
-
HAMBERICHO
14 Dec 2023 18:00
FASIL
-
-
DICHA
15 Dec 2023 15:00
MECHAL
-
-
ADAMA
15 Dec 2023 18:00
BDR
-
-
HAWASSA
16 Dec 2023 15:00
BUNNA
-
-
KDG
16 Dec 2023 18:00
HOSSANA
-
-
MEDIN
17 Dec 2023 15:00
CBE
-
-
SHASHE
17 Dec 2023 18:00
SIDAMA
-
-
DIRE
Round 8
21 Dec 2023 15:00
HAWASSA
-
-
KDG
21 Dec 2023 18:00
WOLKITE
-
-
MECHAL
22 Dec 2023 15:00
FASIL
-
-
HOSSANA
22 Dec 2023 18:00
DIRE
-
-
BDR
23 Dec 2023 15:00
CBE
-
-
BUNNA
23 Dec 2023 18:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
MEDIN
24 Dec 2023 15:00
DICHA
-
-
SIDAMA
24 Dec 2023 18:00
SHASHE
-
-
ADAMA
Round 9
4 Jan 2024 16:00
MEDIN
-
-
SIDAMA
4 Jan 2024 19:00
DICHA
-
-
WOLKITE
5 Jan 2024 16:00
SHASHE
-
-
BDR
5 Jan 2024 19:00
KDG
-
-
MECHAL
6 Jan 2024 16:00
DIRE
-
-
FASIL
6 Jan 2024 19:00
HAWASSA
-
-
BUNNA
7 Jan 2024 16:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
CBE
7 Jan 2024 19:00
ADAMA
-
-
HOSSANA
Round 10
11 Jan 2024 16:00
BUNNA
-
-
SHASHE
11 Jan 2024 19:00
SIDAMA
-
-
ADAMA
12 Jan 2024 16:00
MECHAL
-
-
HAWASSA
12 Jan 2024 19:00
HOSSANA
-
-
KDG
13 Jan 2024 16:00
MEDIN
-
-
DIRE
13 Jan 2024 19:00
BDR
-
-
HAMBERICHO
14 Jan 2024 16:00
WOLKITE
-
-
FASIL
14 Jan 2024 19:00
CBE
-
-
DICHA
Round 11
18 Jan 2024 16:00
ADAMA
-
-
MEDIN
18 Jan 2024 19:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
BUNNA
19 Jan 2024 16:00
KDG
-
-
SIDAMA
19 Jan 2024 19:00
FASIL
-
-
CBE
20 Jan 2024 16:00
DICHA
-
-
BDR
20 Jan 2024 19:00
SHASHE
-
-
MECHAL
21 Jan 2024 16:00
HAWASSA
-
-
HOSSANA
21 Jan 2024 19:00
DIRE
-
-
WOLKITE
Round 12
25 Jan 2024 16:00
MEDIN
-
-
SHASHE
25 Jan 2024 19:00
MECHAL
-
-
FASIL
26 Jan 2024 16:00
BDR
-
-
CBE
26 Jan 2024 19:00
ADAMA
-
-
HAWASSA
27 Jan 2024 16:00
KDG
-
-
DIRE
27 Jan 2024 19:00
SIDAMA
-
-
HAMBERICHO
28 Jan 2024 16:00
BUNNA
-
-
WOLKITE
28 Jan 2024 19:00
HOSSANA
-
-
DICHA
Round 13
1 Feb 2024 16:00
DICHA
-
-
HAMBERICHO
1 Feb 2024 19:00
CBE
-
-
KDG
2 Feb 2024 16:00
HOSSANA
-
-
DIRE
2 Feb 2024 19:00
BUNNA
-
-
MEDIN
3 Feb 2024 16:00
MECHAL
-
-
SIDAMA
3 Feb 2024 19:00
BDR
-
-
ADAMA
4 Feb 2024 16:00
WOLKITE
-
-
HAWASSA
4 Feb 2024 19:00
FASIL
-
-
SHASHE
Round 14
8 Feb 2024 16:00
SIDAMA
-
-
CBE
8 Feb 2024 19:00
MECHAL
-
-
BUNNA
9 Feb 2024 16:00
HOSSANA
-
-
BDR
9 Feb 2024 19:00
HAWASSA
-
-
HAMBERICHO
10 Feb 2024 16:00
ADAMA
-
-
FASIL
10 Feb 2024 19:00
SHASHE
-
-
DIRE
11 Feb 2024 16:00
KDG
-
-
DICHA
11 Feb 2024 19:00
MEDIN
-
-
WOLKITE
Round 15
15 Feb 2024 16:00
BUNNA
-
-
HOSSANA
15 Feb 2024 19:00
BDR
-
-
SIDAMA
16 Feb 2024 16:00
DICHA
-
-
HAWASSA
16 Feb 2024 19:00
WOLKITE
-
-
ADAMA
17 Feb 2024 16:00
DIRE
-
-
MECHAL
17 Feb 2024 19:00
CBE
-
-
MEDIN
18 Feb 2024 16:00
HAMBERICHO
-
-
SHASHE
18 Feb 2024 19:00
FASIL
-
-
KDG

Standing Table

#
Club
P
W
D
L
Pt
1
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
4
0
0
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
7
0
0
0
0
0
8
0
0
0
0
0
9
0
0
0
0
0
10
0
0
0
0
0
11
0
0
0
0
0
12
0
0
0
0
0
13
0
0
0
0
0
14
0
0
0
0
0
15
0
0
0
0
0
16
0
0
0
0
0

Top scorers chart

#
Player
Played
Goals
1
Adama Ketema
0
0
2
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0
3
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0
4
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0
5
Adama Ketema
0
0
6
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0
7
Adama Ketema
0
0
8
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0
9
Adama Ketema
0
0
10
Ethiopia Nigd Bank
0
0

2023/24 Competitions

competition logo
CAF Champions League
competition logo
CAF Confederation Cup
competition logo
Ethiopian Premier League
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