Algerian captain Riyad Mahrez spoke about his future in the selection before the first CAN match.
Riyad Mahrez, the captain of the Fennecs, will play his 6th from this Mondaye international competition with Algeria. Knowing that he is 32 years old, the question of whether this is his last is perfectly legitimate.
Mahrez wants to bring Algeria back to the top
The former Le Havre player was questioned on this subject before the Greens entered the fray at CAN 2023, against Angola. His response was quite evasive: “Finish my career in this competition? I don’t know. In our group there are players who are their first, others have more experience. But we insist on starting well”. The former City player, with 90 caps under his belt, certainly wants to push on to the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Mahrez allegedly doesn’t know what his future holds. On the other hand, what he is convinced of is that he will do everything to guide his team towards their 3e continental coronation. “In 2021 there were a lot of circumstances, Covid, little preparation time. Obviously it was a little difficult to work. There everyone arrived at the same time, we found ourselves together in another country. The serenity is there but once again serenity does not win matches. I am convinced that we are ready.”
Before leaving, the Al-Ahli player insisted on the need to start the event well: “The most important thing is to start the competition well and take it match by match. But like everyone else we have ambitions.” Same story with his coach, Djamel Belmadi. “A first match influences the entire rest of the competition, we have two examples since I became head of this selection.”
