One of the recent AFCON champions will open their campaign on Monday, as Algeria look to make a dream start to Group D when they come up against Angola. The former champions will be heavily favoured to progress through to the knockout round with few issues.
Africa Cup of Nations Preview
Algeria will be among the leading contenders for AFCON glory this year, with much of their chances down to the favourable draw that has been handed to them. The nation were crowned champions at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2019, but that is sandwiched in between two very below-par efforts at the tournament in 2017 and 2021.
Algeria were well below the standard they set when winning the tournament in the previous edition, as they failed to win in three group stage matches and crashed out at the opening hurdle. However, they should come into the tournament this year in much better confidence after going 12 matches without defeat. They have warmed up for the event this year with back-to-back wins against Togo A and Burundi, scoring seven goals in the process.
Angola will see this group as a perfect opportunity to make it through to the knockout stage, as there will likely be a wide open race for the second qualifying position. The nation will be competing at AFCON for the eighth time in their history, and it will be just the second time that they have been involved since 2015.
Their previous appearance came in 2019, but they failed to win in all three group stage matches. Angola have been difficult to beat in recent months, as they come into the tournament after going six without a loss. Their final warm up match saw the nation land a 3-0 win over Bahrain in January.
Algeria vs Angola Head to Head
There have been six draws between these nations in the nine previous clashes. In fact, Algeria is winless in their last four against Angola since recording a 3-2 win at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2001. The latest meeting between the sides saw the teams play out a 0-0 draw in 2010.
Algeria vs Angola Prediction
Algeria don’t boast the best record in this fixture, and that would be a slight concern. However, they boast the better quality across the field, and that could be extremely telling in this opening match. Therefore, we expect the former champions to open with a win.
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