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Riyad Mahrez surrounded by his teammates, July 14, 2019. Pierre René-Worms / RFI

Algeria defeated Nigeria (2-1) in the African Cup of Nations semi-final with a free-kick by Riyad Mahrez at the very last minute of extra time. The Manchester City player returns to grace to become the new national hero before the final. Reactions.

From our special envoy in Cairo,

After 29 years of absence, Algeria will return to the final of the CAN thanks to its victory against Nigeria (2-1). The Fennecs can thank Riyad Mahrez, author of a magnificent free kick at the last minute of play (90 + 5). " This is my most important goal in selection. We are happy to make the people proud, that was our goal. It's my dream to win the African Cup, it remains a match. We will focus because it will be another battle against Senegal . "

" Now there is a final, and a final is meant to be won "

Riyad Mahrez (13 goals in selection) had scored first in the first match against Kenya and in the round of 16 against Guinea. The Manchester City offensive midfielder will play Algeria's third final close to 1980 (0-3 to Nigeria) and 1990 (1-0 to Nigeria). For once, Nigeria will not be the Green's opponent for the title!

And the players of Djamel Belmadi will have only one idea in their head: to repeat the feat of their elders, winners of the competition in 1990 with Rabah Madjer, who left his place of coach in Belmadi. " Now there is a final, and a final is meant to be won. I think it's going to be a good fight, "said the former Marseille player who felt the penalty from Nigeria as an injustice. He adds, " We deserve it. We played well during this tournament and we have the best team. We believed it all the way and it will serve us in the near future. "

" We could have made the difference sooner "

" We controlled the game and we could have made the difference earlier, but we had to wait until the last minute. Good for the show. We deserve this victory. We know why we came here. We want to bring the Cup home, "says Sofiane Feghouli who scored a goal in the quarterfinals against Côte d'Ivoire.

" I do not realize that we are in the final, " said Rami Bensebaini. The Stade Rennais player continues: "We will have to recover. It was not easy in Nigeria. After the penalty we thought it was not over and there would be other opportunities. After eliminating Ivory Coast, we were confident. "

Unexpected before the start of the competition, the career of Djamel Belmadi's men is remarkable. The Fennecs had not dreamed of the Algerian people since the eighth finals of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

► Also read: Calendar, results and standings of the Africa Cup