Algiers – Algeria’s national team of local players coach, Madjid Bougherra, has called up forward Yousri Bouzok to replace the injured Rafiq Gaëtan ahead of the two friendly matches against Palestine scheduled for October 9 and 13 in Annaba, as part of preparations for the FIFA Arab Cup 2025 to be held in Qatar from December 1 to 18, according to the Algerian Football Federation (FAF).
To prepare for these two matches, Bougherra’s men will enter a closed training camp in Annaba from October 6 to 14. During this period, the team will face Palestine twice at the 19 May 1956 Stadium: the first match on October 9 at 8:30 p.m., and the second on October 13 at 6:00 p.m.
In the tournament draw, Algeria—the reigning champions of the first FIFA Arab Cup—was placed in Group D alongside Iraq and the winners of the playoffs between Bahrain-Djibouti and Lebanon-Sudan. Meanwhile, the Palestinian team will play a decisive qualifier against Libya in November in Doha.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout rounds, which will include the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final.
These friendlies mark a crucial step in Algeria’s preparation to defend its title, showcasing the national team’s determination to reaffirm its continental and Arab football supremacy—an ambition that mirrors Algeria’s broader spirit of unity, pride, and steadfast support for just causes, notably the Palestinian and Sahrawi peoples’ fight for freedom and sovereignty.
