São Paulo – Algeria’s first World Cup game, this Tuesday (17th) at Belo Horizonte’s Mineirão Stadium, was attended by 56,800 fans. The Algerians played Belgium and lost 2 to 1. According to a news report from Minas Gerais state government agency Agência Minas, the Algerian crowd cheered more enthusiastically while the team was beating the Belgians one zero. In the second half, ahead in the game, the Belgian crowd cheered louder, according to the agency.
French was the prevailing language in the stadium, since both countries speak it. The Algerians encouraged their team with chants in English and French such as “one, two, three, vive L’Algérie,” meaning “one, two, three, hooray for Algeria!” They wore items such as wigs and capes and had their faces painted green and red, the colours of the country’s flag.
“I am disappointed that we have lost the opportunity to achieve a grand feat. Our problem in the second half was we allowed Belgium to overshadow us physically. The difference in experience got to us in the end. The game was decided by the details and our opponent’s talent. A case in point was the goal scored by Fellaini, one of the players with the strongest aerial game in the world. We were close to achieving a grand feat. I had commented on Belgium’s powerful counter-attacks. Sadly, this proved true on the field,” said the Algerian team’s coach Vahid Halilhodzic, as per the FIFA website.
Algeria is in Group H, alongside Belgium, Russia and South Korea. The Belgians, by the way, were the group’s favourite team and therefore commenters believed it would be easier for the European team to defeat Algeria. In the first phase, the Arab team will also play South Korea, next Sunday (22nd) at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium, and Russia, on June 26th at Arena da Baixada, in Curitiba, Paraná.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
