Riyad Mahrez has confirmed he will not play for Algeria again after they exited the FIFA World Cup following a 2-0 defeat to Switzerland. Breel Embolo and Dan Ndoye netted for the Swiss to send Murat Yakin’s side into the Round of 16, where they will meet either Colombia or Ghana.
The 119th cap for Algeria captain Riyad Mahrez in his career was to be his last as the former Manchester City forward bid farewell to his international colleagues, having scored 40 goals for his country – the second most in Algerian history.
“Our intention was to qualify, and I think we had the match that could be ours. Unfortunately, we let two goals slip through us and at this level, with two slips, it’s hard. It was my last game with Algeria.”
Yakin’s team deserved their win as they were on top for the majority of the match, creating many more chances and remaining solid defensively, to mark just their third victory of the tournament.
After the match, Yakin lauded the determination of his players who, ‘defended very well’ and, ‘scored when it mattered’, against the technically gifted North Africans.
