After Algeria lost to Nigeria with two unanswered goals yesterday, Saturday, in the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Nations held in Morocco, Mahrez admitted that his career in the continental tournament was over, considering that the current tournament was the last in his career with Algeria, after he played six tournaments and than 20 matches, indicating his feeling of pride in what he provided for his country.

Mahrez, who will celebrate his 35th birthday on February 21, participated in the Cup of Nations for the first time in 2015 in Equatorial Guinea, and Algeria was eliminated in the quarter-finals by Côte d’Ivoire.

In 2019, Mahrez was one of the heroes of the “Desert Warriors” winning their second title in the continental championship after 1990. He scored the winning goal against Nigeria in the semi-final 2-1 before beating Senegal in the final 1-0.

After Saturday’s loss to Nigeria in Marrakesh, the former Manchester City and current Al-Ahly Saudi club player praised what he called the “new generation” in the national team and said that it was capable of fulfilling the aspirations of the Algerian public.

Despite Mahrez’s reservations about setting an exact date to hang up his international boots permanently, all indicators and sports reports agree that the World Cup finals, which will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico this summer, will be the final chapter in the career of the “Wizard of Algeria” with his country’s national team.

Source: Agencies