Christian Gourcuff seems to be laying out a solid preparation strategy for Algeria’s 2018 World Cup qualifiers. The focus on friendly matches against strong African and European teams is a smart move to test his players under different tactical setups and provide them with varied competition.
It’s interesting that Algeria is looking for high-caliber opponents, which will allow the team to gauge their progress ahead of the qualifiers. Playing one African and one European side will give them the flexibility to adapt to different styles of play, something crucial for the varied challenges they will face in the qualifiers.
The issue with Mali and Benin certainly adds an extra layer to the situation, especially given the tensions over the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations hosting. It would be a significant story if those teams were excluded from consideration for friendlies.
Any thoughts on which teams would be ideal for Algeria to face during these friendlies? It might be a good opportunity to test different tactical setups before heading into the qualifiers.
