Two of the continent’s heavyweight teams go head-to-head in the second Africa Cup of Nations semi-final, vying for a place in Friday’s showpiece event
Algeria and Nigeria face off in a repeat of the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations final on Sunday, with Nigeria looking to replicate the result which saw them lift their first continental title.
That was both countries’ first appearance in the final, and it took Algeria another decade to reach their second and be crowned champions for the first time.
Nigeria have won seven of the last nine games between these sides, but this one looks like being a highly competitive affair with Algeria the slight favourites to book their place in Friday’s showpiece.
TV Channel, Live Stream & How To Watch
In the United States (US), the game can be watched live and on-demand with fuboTV (7-day free trial).
New users can sign up for a free seven-day trial of the live sports streaming service, which can be accessed via iOS, Android, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and Apple TV as well as on a web browser.
In the United Kingdom (UK), the game will be broadcast on Eurosport 1 and can be streamed via Eurosport Player UK.
| UK TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| Eurosport 1 | Eurosport Player UK |
Squads & Team News
| Position | Algeria squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | M’Bolhi, Doukha, Oukidja. |
| Defenders | Mandi, Helliche, Tahrat, Benlamri, Fares, Zeffane, Atal, Bensebaini. |
| Midfielders | Mahrez, Feghouli, Brahimi, Ounas, Boudaoui, Guedioura, Abeid, Bennacer. |
| Forwards | Slimani, Delort, Bounedjah, Belaili. |
Algeria manager Djamel Belmadi will be without right-back Youcef Atal, with the youngster ruled out with a fractured collarbone.
Possible Algeria XI: M’Bolhi; Bensabaini, Benlamri, Mandi, Zeffane; Guedioura; Belaili, Bennacer, Feghouli, Mahrez; Bounedjah.
| Position | Nigeria squad |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Ezenwa, Akpeyi, Uzoho. |
| Defenders | Omeruo, Balogun, Troost-Ekong, Aina, Collins, Awaziem. |
| Midfielders | Mikel, Ndidi, Etebo, Ogu, Abdullahi. |
| Forwards | Musa, Ighalo, Iwobi, Onyekuru, Chukwueze, Onuachu, Simon, Kalu, Osimhen. |
Gernot Rohr will be boosted by the return to fitness of midfielders John Obi Mikel and Shehu Abdullahi, and has no new injury concerns.
Possible Nigeria XI: Akpeyi; Awaziem, Troost-Ekong, Omeruo, Aina; Ndidi, Mikel; Iwobi, Mikel, Musa; Ighalo.
Betting & Match Odds
Algeria are 29/20 favourites to win this match with bet365. Nigeria can be backed at 21/10, while a draw is available at 2/1.
Match Preview
Algeria have looked in imperious form at times during this tournament, coming through the group stage with three wins and no goals conceded before seeing off Guinea and Ivory Coast in the knockout state.
Nice right-back Youcef Atal will be a loss after he was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament, but they have an impressive core of experienced players in the likes of Riyad Mahrez, Yacine Brahimi and Sofiane Feghouli.
“We want to write our history,” said manager Djamel Belmadi. “And the players want to write their history as well.
“It’s not far — two more steps, but two very difficult steps to this great achievement. We will try our best.”
Nigeria’s squad is stacked with attacking talent but they stuttered during the group stage, finishing second behind Madagascar after 1-0 wins over Burundi and Guinea.
They stepped up in the knockout stage, coming out on top of an entertaining game to beat Cameroon 3-2 before a last-minute win against South Africa in the quarter-finals.
These two met in qualifying for the 2017 World Cup, with one Nigeria win and a draw – though the draw was later chalked down as an Algeria win as Nigeria were punished for fielding an ineligible player.
But Super Eagles boss Gernot Rohr thinks his side are facing a very different Algeria team this time around.
“They were fragile at the time,” he said. “We beat them 3-1 and there were lots of individual mistakes, they made it easy for us…in the return match they were also fragile.
“Now they are solid, they have a good balance between attack and defence, they are still very physical and they have progressed a lot.
“It will be a very different match from those two years ago.”
Be the first to comment