Maxence GEVIN with AFP –
A new trophy for the Fennecs. Algeria, reigning African champion, won the Arab Football Cup for the first time by winning the forceps (2-0) against Tunisia, Saturday, December 18 in Qatar. Hanging on at the end of regulation time, Djamel Belmadi’s players were delivered by the substitute Amir Sayoud (99th) and by Yacine Brahimi (120th + 5). More realistic and solid in a tense match, the Greens of Algeria finally managed to get by in a crowded Qatari Al-Bayt Al-Khor stadium (more than 60,000 spectators).
The Fennecs glean their second trophy in the space of a few months, they who had won the title in the African Cup of Nations (CAN), 29 years after their first coronation. Unbeaten throughout the competition, they had, like all the nations involved, to do without their players playing in Europe.
The tournament took place in six of the eight stadiums that will host matches of the 2022 World Cup, with the final taking place on Qatar’s National Day and one year to the day before the World Cup final. The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, was present in the stands.