Algeria captain Riyad Mahrez believes Nigeria deserved their 2-0 victory over his country in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final, noting that while the refereeing wasn’t good, it wasn’t the reason for the defeat.
Referee Issa Sa sparked considerable controversy after refusing to award Algeria a penalty early in the match, a decision that would have changed everything, despite a clear handball by a Nigerian defender.
Ultimately, Victor Osimhen and Akor Adams scored two goals, leading Nigeria to the semi-finals in a match where the Super Eagles clearly dominated.
Mahrez commented on the match, saying, “The referee wasn’t perfect, but that’s not why we lost. In football, there’s always talk about referees, but the result is decided on the pitch.”
He added, “We faced a strong team, and we could certainly have performed better. We can always talk about tactics and replay the match in our minds, but in the end, they played better than us, and that’s football.”
It is worth noting that Riyad Mahrez scored 3 goals in the CAN, bringing his total goals in the African Nations Championship to 9 throughout his career, knowing that he had announced that this would be his last participation with the Desert Warriors in the continental competition.
