AFCON 2025: Algeria drops Houssem Aouar from the squad and names a replacement

The Algerian national team has confirmed that Houssem Aouar will miss the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after suffering a new muscle problem during the squad’s latest training session.

The Union announced that the Union Jeddah midfielder, who has struggled with several injuries this season, underwent medical tests on Thursday evening that revealed a fresh setback, forcing the staff to rule him out.

In an official statement posted on Facebook, the federation explained that Aouar felt muscular pain in training, and that examinations confirmed an injury which required him to be released from the current camp and withdrawn from the final AFCON list. As a result, head coach Vladimir Petkovic decided to call up midfielder Himad Abdelli to replace Aouar in the “Greens” squad for the upcoming continental tournament.

Aouar’s season with Al Ittihad has already been disrupted, limiting him to 14 appearances across all competitions, including only 7 league matches, 4 in the AFC Champions League Elite, 2 in the King’s Cup and 1 in the Saudi Super Cup, for a total of 1,041 minutes. Petkovic had previously left him out of the Arab Cup to manage his workload and prepare him specifically for the Africa Cup of Nations, but the latest injury has now ended that plan.