Beaten by Cape Verde (0-1) in the round of 16 of the African Cup of Nations, Mauritania can still congratulate itself on having completed an honorable tournament. His coach, Amir Abdou, took the opportunity to see his rating rise. He could also take control of a selection that he made suffer: Algeria, which Mauritania beat in the group stage (1-0).
"Oh yes ! Especially since Algeria is a great football nation. Receiving so much praise from Algerians warms my heart. Algerian friends contacted me to ask me if I was ready to take their selection. (…) Show me a coach who refuses Algeria? I cannot be indifferent to the call of a great football nation such as Algeria. However, I must specify that at the time I am speaking to you (yesterday afternoon), there has been no contact between the agency which represents me and the Algerian Federation ,” he declared to Competition , specifying that his contract with the Mauritanian federation ended on March 1.