AFCON 2027 qualifiers: Burundi vs Algeria – Desert Foxes aim to maintain winning start – Preview

Burundi face a difficult Group I assignment when they welcome Algeria in their second match of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers on Tuesday, September 29, 2026.

The hosts opened their campaign with a narrow 1-0 defeat away to Togo, with Karim Dermane scoring the only goal of the game in the 17th minute. The result left Burundi without a point after the opening round of fixtures.

Patrick Sangwa’s side will now have to produce a strong response against an Algeria team that began the qualifying campaign with an impressive 3-1 victory over Zambia.

The Desert Foxes took an early lead through Jaouen Hadjam before Fashion Sakala equalised for Zambia shortly after half-time. Algeria responded strongly, with Ibrahim Maza restoring their advantage before substitute Anis Hadj Moussa completed the victory in the 74th minute.

The result gave new Algeria coach Brahim Hemdani a winning start and put the Desert Foxes alongside Togo on three points at the top of Group I.

Maza will be one of the players Burundi will have to monitor closely after his influential performance against Zambia. Mohamed Amoura also played a key role, providing assists for Algeria’s first two goals.

Algeria’s squad also contains attacking options such as Amine Gouiri, Mohamed Amoura, Anis Hadj Moussa and Mohamed Belloumi, giving Hemdani several avenues to threaten the Burundian defence.

For Burundi, the challenge will be to recover from their opening defeat and find a way to contain an Algeria side that already has three points on the board. The hosts will also know that another defeat would leave them under significant pressure early in the qualifying campaign.