Algeria rallies for 2-1 win to keep World Cup hopes alive

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — When Algeria emerged from the tunnel of Levi’s Stadium for its Group J World Cup match, it had to be relieved when it looked across the pitch and there was no sign of Lionel Messi.

It should have been taken as a positive sign and ultimately it was.

Battling back from a 1-0 second-half deficit, the Algerians rallied with goals from Nadhir Berbouali in the 69th minute and Amine Gouiri in the 82nd to defeat Jordan 2-1 and keep their hopes alive of extending their stay at this World Cup.

“We were behind at halftime but we were patient,” said midfielder Ibrahim Maza. ‘We believed we would score and we did.”

“The most important thing was the win and getting the three points.”  

That Algeria had put Messi and his hat trick in their 3-0 loss to Argentina in its rear-view mirror certainly buoyed their collective spirits against a Jordan side that played uneven soccer and was unable to protect the lead as time ticked away in the second half. And with no individual for Jordan even close to treating to take over the match like Messi does made the path for the comeback for Algeria more realistic.

Algeria still has to deal with Austria, which lost 2-0 to Messi and Argentina earlier in the day. But they’ll take their chances with the Austrians, who have a win in the bank already from having defeated Jordan in their opening Group J contest.

“We’re looking to the next game,” said Maza, who plays in the German Bundesliga for Bayer Leverkusen. “We have the three points already and we will have to fight even more to beat Austria.”

For the Jordanians, their stay will end after they get to deal with Messi. Their one shining moment came in the 36th minute when midfielder Nizar Al-Rishan put Al-Nashama in the lead. His shot from inside the penalty area beat goalkeeper Luca Zidane to the bottom right corner.

But as Algeria ratcheted up the pressure run the second half, the Jordanians wilted. First was Berbouali going up for the header and getting enough on it to tie it. Then Gouiri being opportunistic as the ball came to him in the box and he knocked it home to put his side in front.

There was seven minutes of stoppage time for Algeria to sweat out but it handled the challenge well and got the much-needed three points.

And as the final whistle blew, the Algerian players knelt to the turf and kissed it in gratitude for what it had managed to accomplish.

“We’re very happy for the win,” said Maza, who earned Man of the Match honors. “We never stopped believing in ourselves.”