The Algerian national team qualified for the World Cup for the fifth time in its history after defeating Somalia 3-0 on Thursday in Oran, during the ninth round of the African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

At the Miloud Hadefi Stadium in Oran, in front of about 40,000 spectators, captain Riyad Mahrez, the star of Al-Ahli Saudi club, led his country to victory by assisting the first and third goals scored by Mohamed Amoura (6th and 58th minutes), and scoring the second goal himself (19th minute).

The ‘Desert Warriors’ raised their points tally to 22, four points ahead of their closest rivals Uganda in Group 7.

Algeria, currently ranked 38th in the world, first participated in the 1982 Spain World Cup, where they defeated West Germany 2-1 but were controversially eliminated in the group stage.

Their last participation was in the 2014 Brazil World Cup, when they qualified for the knockout stages for the first time but lost to Germany 1-2 after extra time.

Algeria missed out on qualifying for the last edition in Qatar 2022 after a dramatic scenario in the final moments of extra time against Cameroon in Blida.

The Swiss coach Vladimir Petkovic’s squad included goalkeeper Luca Zidane, son of French legend Zinedine Zidane, on the bench, while Alexis Guendouz (29 years old) started the match.

The home team took only six minutes to open the scoring when Mahrez played a cross from the right side which Amoura converted with a close-range shot.

The Algerians continued their pressure and scored the second goal through Mahrez following a cross from Farès Chaïbi (19th minute).

The pressure continued as Amoura scored the third goal with a header after another cross from captain Mahrez (58th minute), marking his eighth goal in the qualifiers over nine matches.

Algeria could have achieved a larger margin if not for missed chances and resting some stars in the second half.