Algeria-Angola is a match valid for the group stage of the African Cup of Nations and is played Monday at 9 p.m.: free-to-air TV, streaming, lineups, predictions.
For Algeria, it is the sixth consecutive participation in an African Cup of Nations final phase. The Desert Foxes, who triumphed in the penultimate edition (2019), must first of all redeem the disappointing expedition two years ago in Cameroon, when as defending champions they were resoundingly eliminated already after the group stage, even finishing behind selections such as Equatorial Guinea and Sierra Leone.
The goal for Mahrez and his teammates is to prove that the Cameroon fiasco was just an accident of the road, despite the fact that we also missed out on qualification at the last World Cup organized by Qatar. Algeria arrives in Ivory Coast on the wings of enthusiasm, having not known defeat for 13 consecutive matches: their last knockout was last February. The group in which the men led by technical commissioner Djamel Belmadi have fallen, moreover, is on paper one of the least insidious, with the only pitfalls being Burkina Faso and Angola. To overcome it will most likely be determined by the experience of players such as Slimani, Feghouli and Mahrez himself, who in the summer switched from Manchester City to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia. Also in midfield is Milan’s Bennacer, who recently returned from a long injury.
In Angola, the star is Luvumbo
Angola also wants to carve out an important space for itself, returning to the final stage of an African Cup of Nations after missing the last edition.
The Palancas Negras, led by Portugal’s Pedro Goncalves, are coming off four consecutive draws, between friendlies and qualifying matches for the upcoming World Cup. To trace the last success, however, one has to go back to last July. Getting past the round in a round that is not as impossible as this one would allow them to return to the knockout stage for the first time since 2010. In attack, the star is Cagliari’s Luvumbo, who is also showing off in Serie A after doing very well in the cadet series. On the other hand, Fiorentina striker Nzola said no to the call-up.
The prediction
Algeria, unlike two years ago, wants to get off on the right foot and is very likely to debut in the Africa Cup of Nations ’23 with a win, making the most of its greater experience. It cannot be ruled out that the Desert Foxes will also manage to keep their goal unbeaten.
The probable lineups of Algeria-Angola
ALGERIA (4-3-3): Mandrea; Atal, Bensebaini, Mandi, Ait-Nouri; Feghouli, Bentaleb, Bennacer; Chaibi, Mahrez, Slimani.
ANGOLA (4-3-3): Adilson; Carneiro, Buatu-Mananga, Gaspar, Augusto; Keliano, Cafumana, Ribeiro; Luvumbo, Milson, Dala.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-0
