AFCON: Algeria coach Petković concedes defeat: ‘Nigeria deserved to win’

Algeria national team coach Vladimir Petković threw in the towel following their defeat against Nigeria in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco on Saturday.

Striker Victor Osimhen scored his fourth goal of the competition and assisted as Nigeria edged Algeria 2-0 to seal their place in the semi-finals of the 2025 edition in the North African nation.

First, Osimhen rose highest to thunder home a precise Bruno Onyemaechi cross with a powerful header in the 27th minute. Ten minutes later, the Galatasaray forward turned the provider after he slid in Akor Adams to slot it past goalkeeper Luca Zidane and double their lead.

Algeria couldn’t get into the game properly

“I congratulate the Nigerian team, who deserved to win the match. The opponent played better than us. We couldn’t get into the game properly; we had to stay focused,” Petković told CAFOnline.com.

“I don’t want to go into too many details, but Nigeria was better than us. We were missing a lot of things. We wanted to control the game, but the opponent was strong and prevented us from doing so.

“The Nigerian team showed the individual skills they possess, and physically we were behind. We tried to come back in the second half, but we couldn’t reach the level we wanted in attack.”

He concluded: “Our players are disappointed and devastated after the match. They performed well in this tournament. Now the competition is over, and another tournament is coming. We must keep our heads high after this exit.”

Nigeria in their 16th AFCON semifinal appearance will face hosts Morocco in the semifinal of the tournament.