Akor Adams of Nigeria challenged by Rayan Ait Nouri of Algeria during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Quarterfinal match between Algeria and Nigeria at Marrakech Stadium in Morocco on 10 January 2025 ©Alche Greeff/BackpagePix
Saturday Jan 10, 2026. 18:40
Join AfricanFootball.com for LIVE updates from all 52 matches of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, as 24 teams battle for glory in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January.
Today’s matches:
18h00 – Algeria v Nigeria – Match Centre
21h00 – Egypt v Cote d’Ivoire – Match Centre
Updates:
45′ – There will be three minutes added on at the end of the first half.
37′ – Alex Iwobi wins the ball from Zidane’s clearance and he plays in Akor Adams, who blazes over the bar from the edge of the box. That was Nigeria’s best chance by far.
29′ – Ramy Bensebaini makes a last-ditch clearance on the line after Zidane comes out and fails to claim Osimhen’s free-kick into the box.
26′ – Nigeria go close to the opener as Ademola Lookman releases Victor Osimhen through on goal with a fine pass and the striker is thwarted by a brave block from Zidane.
23′ – Midway through the first half and Nigeria get their first shot on goal. They launch a counter from a poor Algeria free-kick and Ademola Lookman hits a fierce shot straight at Luca Zidane.
13′ – Nigeria survive a scare after the ball appears to strike Semi Ajayi on the arm insider the box, but the referee waves play on and there is no VAR review of the incident.
8′ – Another sniff at goal for the Super Eagles, this time from a corner which sees Victor Osimhen not time his jump correctly as he heads the ball over the bar from close range.
2′ – An early chance for Nigeria from a free-kick 30 yards out as Semi Ajayi gets away from his marker to direct a header over the crossbar.
1′ – Nigeria get this quarter-final encounter underway at the Marrakesh Stadium.
What the managers said:
Algeria head coach Vladimir Petkovic: “The most important thing is the mentality, everything starts with that, and from that perspective we have been flawless. We have confidence and quality.
“Every detail will matter against Nigeria. Nothing can be left to chance. We have the quality and we believe in ourselves. Now it’s up to us to deliver a great performance.”
Nigeria head coach Eric Chelle: “We’ve tried to find the weaknesses of the opponent and we try to put it into the head of our team that we can go past this obstacle.
“This is the quarter-finals and your state of mind is very important because you have to manage the pressure, manage the opponent and what your coach ask you. So, this is what we try to work on every day and I believe we will be ready for the game.”
The AFCON 2023 losing finalists dispatched Mozambique 4-0 last time out to become the highest goalscorers in the the tournament with 12. Eric Chelle’s side overame Tanzania (2-1), Tunisia (3-2) and Uganda (3-1) in the group stages.
Vladimir Petkovic’s side needed extra time to get past DR Congo in the round of 16 after Adil Boulbina scored a dramatic 119th-minute winner. The North Africans beat Sudan (3-0), Burkina Faso (1-0) and Equatorial Guinea (3-1) in the group stages.
The only two teams left with perfect records in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations go head-to-head at the Marrakesh Stadium for a place in the semi-finals. Algeria and Nigeria have met nine times before on the continent’s biggest stage, with the Fennecs edging the Super Eagles four wins to three in their previous match-ups.
Algeria v Nigeria starting line-ups:
Algeria: L. Zidane, R. Belghali, A. Mandi, R. Bensebaini, R. Aït-Nouri, R. Mahrez, R. Zerrouki, H. Boudaoui, F. Chaibi, I. Maza, M. Amoura.
Nigeria: S. Nwabali, B. Osayi-Samuel, S. Ajayi, C. Bassey, B. Onyemaechi, F. Onyeka, W. Ndidi, A. Iwobi, A. Lookman, A. Adams, V. Osimhen.