Tuesday, January 31
•Algeria Vs Niger – 7pm
•Senegal Vs Madagascar – 10pm
Algeria face Niger at Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran in the first semifinal of the 2022 African Nations Championship (CHAN).
This will be Algeria’s first game in Oran, having played all their games at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers in this competition.
They have won all their games 1-0, including a quarterfinal victory against Ivory Coast.
Earlier, they edged Libya, Ethiopia and Mozambique to win group A with maximum points.
“We are at home in Oran. We have travelled here from Algiers, and we are excited to see the support of the people of this beautiful city. We saw how they supported Algeria in the Mediterranean Games so we want to experience this too,” Algeria coach Madjid Bougherra is quoted by CAF.
“We know that Niger have played all their games here and feel at home but when we get to the pitch, we want to continue making the people of Algeria happy and to book a place in the final.
“Niger have had the opportunity to play here but for us it is fine. It is our home. We played some friendly games here in Oran. We feel at home anywhere we play in Annaba, Constantine, Algiers, Oran. For us, it is the same. It is normal.
“In the knock-out stages, every game is important. Niger have played one less game and we have been following them closely. We felt that the team was getting tired towards the end of their last game but in the semi-finals, every game is psychological and not how tired one is. We shall play the game as it is and we hope to win.”
But Bougherra will be without first choice goalkeeper Alexis Guendouz who was sent off against Ivory Coast.
Algeria will bank on the form of striker Aymen Mahous who has scored three of the team’s four goals.
Niger on the other hand, are vying to reach the semifinals of this competition for the very first time.
They were beaten at this stage on their debut in 2011 by hosts Sudan in shootouts and will be hoping to do better this time.
This is their fourth CHAN tournament for a side that failed to go past the groups in 2016 and 2020.
Just like Algeria, they are yet to conceded a goal at the tournament.
“It is a game that we have to play in a simple way. All we need to do is to win and go to the final. The pressure is on Algeria who are playing at home,” Niger coach Harouna Doula said.
“They have no choice but to win the match but for us, we want to meet our target which is to qualify for the final so we have no pressure at all.
“have told my players that they need to set themselves free. They need to express themselves during the game and if they do this, we can win the game.”
