The Algerian national football team coach, Djamel Belmadi, confirmed that the two matches against Cameroon in the decisive role qualifying for the 2022 World Cup are the most important in his career as a coach and as a player, declaring that he bears the responsibility for the failure in the African Nations.
The Algerian national team will be a guest of its Cameroonian counterpart on March 25 in Douala, and they will meet Algeria four days later at Mustafa Chaker Stadium.
last chance
Belmadi said - in a press conference today, Sunday - at the technical center of Sidi Moussa of the Football Association in the Algerian capital, "I know that it will be the last chance to play in the World Cup for most players. It is the most prominent tournament, and this is what has been my concern since September (last). We deserve to be in a country Arab and Muslim.
đź“Śđź“Ś#Belmadi: Our country will be indulgent in the World Cup, which will be hosted by an Arab and Muslim country, and the Algerians will be strongly present pic.twitter.com/e1oFQKKmDN
— Ennahar Tv Al Nahar (@ennaharonline) February 27, 2022
He added, "Today I have no time to waste on words other than the national team; we can talk about local football in the future. But for me it is about two matches that are the most important in my career as a player and coach combined. We will play the return match in our country, qualification must not be lost from us, We want to do it with our people. We know that our fans are waiting for us in Blida, our stadium should be like the Bombonera (Argentina's Boca Juniors stadium)."
And he added, "The statistics of our confrontations with Cameroon show that we do not have many victories against them, we did many things, and we were not always the favorites, we have to turn these facts for this confrontation. We will need something special, I have an optimistic and ambitious nature. We must play a very big match, It's for the World Cup, it can't be a simple game."
đź“Śđź“Ś# Belmadi: We can't tell Bouguerra what you don't play with me in the match against Morocco pic.twitter.com/wGACYtk255
— Ennahar Tv Al Nahar (@ennaharonline) February 27, 2022
Africa's disappointment
Belmadi pointed out that he forgot the disappointment of the early exclusion from the last African Nations Cup, pointing out that it is not with the same data and desire only that it is possible to go to the World Cup.
And he added, "Cameroon also has the desire to qualify for the World Cup. We were supposed to meet them in Yaounde, but exceptionally they chose Jaboma Stadium (the city of Douala). We are shocked by the ground, not the stadium or the city."
🎙 Djamel Belmadi sur le stade Japoma.
« On ne croit pas aux superstitions, on est pas traumatisés par ce stade.
On souhaite juste une bonne pelouse.
» pic.twitter.com/lyrthwdq64
— JDZ Football (@JDZFootball) February 27, 2022
Belmadi reiterated his assertion about not relying on Andy Delors, the French club Nice striker, who preferred not to participate in the African Nations Cup, in order to devote himself to his club.
Belmadi criticized - at the same time - that some dual nationals and their families did not take any step to join the "greens" despite the need for them, especially by mentioning Hossam Aouar, the French star of Lyon.
đź“Śđź“Ś# Belmadi: We can't tell Bouguerra what you don't play with me in the match against Morocco pic.twitter.com/wGACYtk255
— Ennahar Tv Al Nahar (@ennaharonline) February 27, 2022
Senegal deserved to win
On the other hand, Belmadi said that Senegal deserved to win the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, accusing "poor preparation" of causing the "Desert Warriors" to leave the continental championship.
Senegal beat Egypt 4-2 on penalties, after the official and extra time ended in a goalless draw in the final match that was held on the sixth of February in Yaoundé, to win the continental title for the first time in its history, after losing it in the 2002 sessions to Cameroon, and 2019 in front of Algeria.
Belmadi said: "Senegal deserved to be crowned. It is a team that includes a number of great players. We congratulate them. They are in the first match, they scored the goal in the 96th minute, we could not do that."
Algeria, the defending champion, was eliminated from the first round after a negative draw against Sierra Leone and two consecutive losses against Equatorial Guinea, 0-1, and Ivory Coast 1-3.
đź“Śđź“Ś#Belmadi: We were all infected with Corona, even me.. I had only 5 players who were not infected pic.twitter.com/DWLLOGrAe8
— Ennahar Tv Al Nahar (@ennaharonline) February 27, 2022
With my past, I can bear failure
Belmadi stressed that he bears the responsibility for what he called "failure and failure", noting that the conditions of preparation were not entirely suitable for a competition of the size of African nations.
He added, "23 players - out of a total of 28 - were infected with the Corona virus, half of the technical staff as well. The preparations were catastrophic. We set the preparatory program 3 or 4 months before the start of the competition, we were supposed to go to our preparatory camp on December 27, but the census It wasn't completed until the 3rd of January, and we didn't know about it until two or three days ago. There is a lack of respect for this continent."
The circumstances that Belmadi spoke about, which were among the reasons for the failure in the club, especially the infection of the players with the Corona virus, why were they not announced at the time, like the rest of the participating teams, and why were we deluded that the analyzes on the eve of the matches were all negative??
We could understand the situation of that man!!!
pic.twitter.com/bIX7n8KJkU
— Mohamed Louadahi Mohamed Louadahi (@mohamedlouadahi) February 27, 2022
"Part of the players - maybe the whole group - played the Arab Cup. There was no lack of humility. It was a form of complacency, a lot of certainty. You have to feel hungry again, it takes a lot of mental strength. If you don't have That, that's a problem. But if they hadn't played the Arab Cup, they would have suffered from a lack of competition."