Algeria midfielder Ibrahim Maza, named Man of the Match, praised his team’s grit following their hard-fought 1-0 win over Burkina Faso that clinched a spot in the Africa Cup of Nations knockout stages.
Riyad Mahrez’s penalty in the 23rd minute sealed the deal, pushing Les Fennecs to six points atop Group E. Maza came close to scoring himself but was denied by the keeper, yet stayed focused on the bigger picture.
“Today was because of the team. I think everyone did well and the most important thing was to win the game. The goal was for us to qualify and not really individual awards. We are now officially qualified and happy with the work we put in,” Maza said.
“We knew it would be tough because they are tough in the duels, but we also needed to be strong in duels and I think we did quite well in matching them,” he added, highlighting the physical battle that saw an early injury to Juan Hadjam.
The match stayed tense, with Burkina Faso pushing back but Algeria holding firm. Now qualified, they face Equatorial Guinea next, while Burkina Faso meets Sudan in a battle for second place on New Year’s Eve.
