L’Algérie s’impose avec maîtrise face à l’Arabie saoudite

Algeria wins with mastery against Saudi Arabia

Friendly match

Traveling to Jeddah for a preparation test before CAN 2025, the Algerian football team scored a convincing victory against Saudi Arabia (2-0) on Tuesday evening at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal stadium.

A logical success which reflects the gradual rise in power of Vladimir Petkovic’s men one month before the continental deadline.

A closed first half, dominated by caution
From the first minutes, the two teams showed the importance they attached to this meeting, despite its friendly nature. The Saudis, encouraged by their home crowd, tried to put their foot on the ball and dictate the tempo, but came up against an organized, disciplined and attentive Algerian defense. The Greens, for their part, opted for a cautious start to the match, seeking to support the increase in rhythm while avoiding mistakes.
Offensively, the Algerians took a while to get into their game. The Saudi attempts, often initiated in the corridors, never really worried the Algerian goalkeeper thanks to a good reading of the game from the central hinge and the constant presence of the midfielders in the recovery.
The first real Algerian opportunity only came in the 29th minute: a corner from Bennacer, repelled by the opposing defense, landed at the feet of Mahrez, whose outstretched cross almost found Bounedjah within six meters. An action which revealed the first Saudi flaws in the aerial game. Ten minutes later, Hadj Moussa distinguished himself with a powerful attempt that the Saudi defense deflected for a corner. Shortly before the break, a very active Mahrez fired a dangerous shot into the area, but a Saudi intervention prevented the opening score.

Return from the locker room: a more ambitious and offensive Algeria
Upon the restart, the Algerians clearly changed their face. More aggressive in pressing, faster in circulating the ball and sharper on the sides, the Greens immediately put pressure on the Saudi defense. Hadj Moussa, untenable on his right lane, set the tone in the 46th minute by forcing the opposing goalkeeper to concede a corner on a dazzling overflow.
Algerian domination then increased over the minutes, with several dangerous situations approaching the zone of truth. Technical precision, somewhat absent in the first half, improved markedly, as Bennacer and Mahrez took control of the midfield, dictating play and speeding up transitions.

Mahrez from the penalty spot, Belghali as a finisher: the Greens materialize their superiority
The deliverance came in the 75th minute: a new incursion by Hadj Moussa into the Saudi area was stopped irregularly, pushing Qatari referee Abdallah Al-Rowaili to point to the penalty spot. Mahrez, faithful to his experience and his composure, transformed the sentence with precision, opening the score and freeing his team.
Buoyed by this advance, Algeria continued to push. Hadj Moussa, again, provoked a save from the Saudi goalkeeper in the 85th minute. The rejected ball returned to the feet of new entrant Belghali, who did not tremble and sent the ball into the back of the net with a powerful shot, definitively sealing the Algerian victory.

A reassuring victory before the final straight towards CAN 2025
This success allows Algeria to refine its collective benchmarks and continue to build the dynamic desired by Petkovic. The coach, who had fielded a team close to his typical eleven, however, had to deal with several major absences: Ramy Bensebaïni, Hicham Boudaoui and Mohamed Amine Amoura, important in the backbone of the “Club Algeria”, were missing due to injuries.
With this victory, the Greens take a slight statistical advantage over Saudi Arabia in direct confrontations (2 victories, 2 draws, 1 defeat), a symbolic detail but always worth taking.

Last step: a final decisive internship in December
The Greens returned to Algiers on Wednesday for a short recovery period. They will then begin, in December, their last preparation course, during which Vladimir Petkovic will have to decide on his final list for the 35th edition of the CAN.
The draw places Algeria in Group E, alongside Burkina Faso, Sudan and Equatorial Guinea. Petkovic’s men will begin the competition on December 24 against Sudan (4 p.m.), with the ambition of starting the tournament in a convincing manner and aiming for a performance that meets expectations.
Reda B.