Algeria coach Djamel Belmadi is lost for words after their painful exit in the hands of minnows Mauritania at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d'Ivoire.
A 37th-minute goal by Yali Dellahi was all that the Lions of Chinguetti needed to beat the Desert Foxes to progress to the round of 16 in Group D.
“The observation right here is that we have conceded a goal, we can come back here and look at the goals that we conceded. There are some things that I cannot explain; we haven’t been able to score even though we had good plans and tactics," Belmadi said.
“This is the mystery of football. If we do not create chances, if we are dominated by chances created by the opponent teams, if we miss a lot of opportunities, then we could say there is a sector that is not good but that was not the case in the matches we played, so these are things I can’t explain.
“We are out of the Afcon for the second time and that’s football. That’s how it is. We have not been able to score, and we have not been able to make a difference," Belmadi added.
He went on: "As I said in the beginning, we don’t have any small team in this Afcon and you can be punished anytime with a set piece or a penalty, so we were not able to finish our chances and create more.”
All the odds favored Algeria to pick their first win in the tournament but Mauritania came to the party, sending their North African opponents packing.
Mauritania goalkeeper Babacar Niasse made heroic saves to keep the Lions of Chinguetti in the game. The win was Mauritania’s first in the history of the Afcon.
With three points, Mauritania is through to the knockout stage of the competition.
