By our reporter 7.1.2026
Algeria head coach Vladimir Petković said his headache between now and Saturday is to plan effectively how to stop Nigeria’s Super Eagles in the quarterfinal of the Africa Cup of Nations after the Desert Warriors beat Congo DR 1-0 in Tuesday’s round of 16 in Rabat, Morocco.
Just when Congo DR thought the game would head into a shootout substitute Adil Boulbina’s 119th thunder goal from outside the box settled the scores sending Algeria to Marrakesh where they would be facing familiar foes the Super Eagles of Nigeria in a mouthwatering encounter.
Nigeria and Algeria won all their group games and are top contenders for the title.
“I believe we deserved to win against Congo DR based on what our players delivered, and I thank them for that. We controlled two-thirds of the match and played good football, even though we faced some challenges during the game,” said coach Petkovic.
We played well as a group, dominated the match, overcame difficulties, scored a goal and managed to win and qualify. I think we managed the match professionally. Qualifying was important, and now we will think about the next match against Nigeria.
“We will start preparing right now by focusing on our strengths.
“I like these kinds of matches because they demand hard work and intensity against teams that are aiming for the title.”