Algeria coach Djamel Belmadi is unhappy over his team's finishing after they came from a goal down to defeat visitors Niger on Thursday night in Algiers.
The Desert Warriors rallied to defeat the Menas 2-1 in a Group F qualifying tie of the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
It was a third straight win for Algeria sending them to a comfortable nine points in the group.
Belmadi said although they dominated play, his team was not sharp enough to take their chances which were created.
“We need to improve on the finishing when we face Niger again next week,” the Algeria coach Belmadi said after the game.
Led by their England based skipper Riyaz Mahrez, the home side kicked off the match attacking in numbers, while the Niger team sat back to absorb the pressure.
Against the run of play Daniel Sosah put the Niger team ahead at the Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers after 38 minutes. The FC Isloch striker lobbed Algeria’s goalkeeper from 30 yards.
But the Desert Warriors did not give up and kept pushing forward.
Algeria made a rapid start to the second half with Baghdad Bounedjah’s well taken header blocked for a corner after 51 minutes.
But it was not long before Bounedjah headed in a well taken Mahrez cross three minutes later. However, defender Abdel Rahim Bonkano Alhassane seemed to have had a touch on the ball before it crossed the line for Algeria’s equalizer.
After hitting the pole in the 78th minute, Mahrez made no mistake 10 minutes later when he capitalized on substitute Badredine Bouanani’s cross to tap in to give Algeria the lead.
Bounedjah said he was happy to score one of the goals in the home match. “It was teamwork that we managed to win the match,” added the forward after the match.
Uganda Cranes will host Tanzania in the other Group FC match to be played on Friday in Cairo, Egypt. The East African teams both have one point each after picking a draw in their two matches they have each played.
