The dream for Equatorial Guinea, the nightmare for Algeria. After 35 consecutive matches without defeat, in all competitions, the Fennecs have fallen. And, to everyone’s surprise, it was Equatorial Guinea who bent the defending champions, on the narrowest of margins (0-1), thanks to a goal from Orozco Fernandez. In this 2022 edition of the African Cup of Nations, Algeria is more than ever in danger. Still unable to score a single goal, they are forced to win against Côte d’Ivoire, in a shock that is already very promising in Group E.
The Fennecs are on the precipice in CAN 2022, and it was quite difficult to predict before the start of the competition. After being hooked by Sierra Leone on the first day, they fell into the trap of Equatorial Guinea, this time conceding a worrying loss before the decisive face-to-face with Côte d’Ivoire, which we thought to be a final for first place. The fact is that Algeria never gave the impression of mastering their subject in a very physical meeting, marked by many whistles. She was able to accelerate intermittently, notably under the impetus of a Riyad Mahrez who gradually sank, but it was insufficient to worry an opponent who bravely played his luck.
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Especially since efficiency has once again fled the men of Djamel Belmadi, very nervous at the edge of the field. Baghdad Bounedjah, for example, believed he had opened the scoring after a header from Mahrez pushed back by the goalkeeper, but his teammate playing at Manchester City was offside (23rd). Youcef Belaïli thought he had equalized in the last minutes, but he was also offside on a long opening (83rd). To these placement errors, we must add the clumsiness of some (Islam Slimani who missed a shot at close range in the 82nd minute) and the resistance of others. Thus, there was always a foot from a player from Equatorial Guinea to ward off danger… when there was any.
In addition to an exemplary solidity for 90 minutes, the surprise winner was able to show opportunism. The goal is quite a symbol: on a free kick however badly shot, Orozco Fernandez took advantage of a deflection at the near post and a defensive oversight to punish Algeria (0-1, 71st). The hero of the match then split with a decisive gesture in his area, to push back on his line (86th). His goal, the only one of the meeting, comes a little more to overwhelm the Fennecs who are in bad shape in this African Cup of Nations. With a small point taken, they are dead last in Group E and are very happy to have seen Côte d’Ivoire be hung by Sierra Leone a few hours earlier (2-2). After the miracle of Equatorial Guinea, it is Algeria’s turn to produce one.
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