Algeria edged past the Democratic Republic of Congo with a dramatic 1-0 win in their Africa Cup of Nations last-16 encounter on Tuesday, booking a quarter-final clash against Victor Osimhen’s Nigeria in Marrakesh on Saturday.
The tightly contested tie at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat was settled deep into extra time, as substitute Adil Boulbina struck in the 119th minute. The 22-year-old Al-Duhail forward burst down the left, drove into the box and fired a fierce shot into the net to ignite wild celebrations among the 18,837 spectators.
Making only his second appearance off the bench at the tournament, an emotional Boulbina said the moment was the fulfilment of a lifelong dream. “I have always dreamed of playing for the national team. Every Algerian wants to represent their country and do well. I got my chance, scored, and the most important thing is that we won and qualified,” he said.
The 2019 champions, who cruised through the group stage with a perfect record, have now strengthened their credentials as contenders for a third continental crown. For DR Congo, however, the defeat was a painful setback, having hoped to set up a meeting with Nigeria after eliminating the Super Eagles on penalties in a World Cup qualifying play-off last November.
“We are obviously disappointed,” said DR Congo coach Sebastien Desabre. “It was a high-level game between two very good teams. The players gave everything and fought until the end, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough.”
The match itself was cagey for long spells, with few clear openings in the first half. Axel Tuanzebe headed narrowly wide from a corner for DR Congo, while Algeria’s Ibrahim Maza fired just past the post. After the break, Edo Kayembe forced Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane into a long-range save, but neither side could find a breakthrough, sending the tie into extra time.
Algeria piled on the pressure in the additional period, with Lionel Mpasi producing superb saves to deny Fares Chaibi and Baghdad Bounedjah in the 111th minute. Just as penalties loomed, Ramiz Zerrouki slipped a perfectly weighted pass to Boulbina, who made no mistake to seal victory.
Meanwhile, Nigeria continued their imperious form in Morocco with a commanding 4-0 demolition of Mozambique in Fes on Monday. Osimhen netted twice, while Ademola Lookman and Akor Adams also found the target as the Super Eagles cruised into the quarter-finals.
Lookman opened the scoring after 20 minutes before teeing up Osimhen for his first five minutes later. The Galatasaray striker struck again shortly after the restart, and Adams completed the rout in the 75th minute, with Lookman again providing the assist.
“It was a fantastic team performance,” Osimhen said. “We created chances, took them, and this win gives us momentum going into the quarter-finals.”
The emphatic result was Nigeria’s biggest margin of victory in an AFCON knockout match since Egypt’s 4-0 win over Algeria in the 2010 semi-finals. Mozambique, making their first-ever appearance in the knockout rounds, were outclassed by a Nigerian side that welcomed back key players after squad rotation in the group stage.
Nigeria and Algeria will now meet in Marrakesh on Saturday in what promises to be a blockbuster quarter-final showdown.
