Will Algeria return to the top? In any case, this is the wish of the millions of Fennecs supporters determined to thrill this winter in Morocco, on the occasion of the African Cup of Nations (December 21 – January 18), Yacine included. Manager of the independent media La Vague Verte, which has nearly 74,000 subscribers on the social network
Especially since the national team has been an integral part of this supporter’s life since he was very young: “I started following the Algerian team very young, around 4 years old,” remembers the young man, who grew up in Algerian culture. “My relationship with the country is very strong, I go there at least twice a year. My father is from Oran and my mother from Tizi-Ouzou, in Kabylia. »
It is also thanks to his family that Yacine developed his passion for Algerian football. “With my dad, we watched all the matches of Algerian players, regardless of the championship. We obviously followed the selection but also the local championship. It’s always been part of my life,” he says.
CAN 2019, “an unforgettable moment for every Algerian supporter”
Definitely falling in love with the Fennecs on November 18, 2009, the day Algeria qualified for the 2010 World Cup after a knife-edge play-off against Egypt, our supporter experienced the most beautiful moment of his life as a football fan in 2019, when Djamel Belmadi’s men won the second CAN in their history.
“It remains my most beautiful memory, I remember it down to the smallest details,” he recalls as his voice clears when talking about the decisive goal scored by Baghdad Bounedjah in the final against Senegal. “The collective emotion was incredible. Djamel Belmadi (the coach at the time) knew how to unite a whole team and a whole people. It’s an unforgettable moment for every Algerian supporter,” he says.
The consecration of a lifetime for Yacine, who spends his weekends keeping La Vague Verte subscribers informed of the performances of Algerian players in the four corners of the globe. “I have been taking care of this media on my own for several years, on several social networks. For me, it’s simply doing what I’ve been doing since I was little: following Algerian football and passing on this passion to others. »
“Waste, incomprehension and weariness”
A passion that has remained intact despite the difficulties encountered in recent years by the Fennecs. Launched on a series of 35 consecutive matches without defeat between 2018 and 2022, Mahrez and his partners experienced a descent into hell from their first setback, which came against Equatorial Guinea during CAN 2022.
What followed: two eliminations from the group stage of the continental tournament and a missed World Cup in 2022. “The last CANs were very hard to endure, we came out of 2019 with a team that had made us dream, victory at the Arab Cup in 2021,” remembers Yacine. “When we come out of all that and follow up with two eliminations in the first round, obviously it scores. What frustrates the most is that the pool of players has never seemed so strong,” he laments.
As CAN 2025 approaches, one thing is certain: struggles and disillusionment have inoculated Algerian fans, still traumatized by the chaos in which the Belmadi era ended: “There is a feeling of waste, incomprehension and even weariness among certain supporters who were nevertheless among the most loyal and who have completely stopped following this team. We had the feeling that there was cronyism in the team, privileged people who no longer necessarily deserved to be present,” testifies Yacine, very wary at the dawn of the continental tournament.
A “tricky” draw
Placed in Group E with Burkina Faso, Equatorial Guinea and Sudan – three tough opponents evoking bad memories for the Greens – Algeria will have to gain strength according to our supporter. “The draw may seem affordable, but when you look at the recent history of its teams, it becomes much more tricky,” he worries.
So, in the game of predictions, Yacine does not prefer to get too far ahead before the start of hostilities: “If we start with a defeat or a draw, doubt can set in very quickly, especially after the last two CAN and the early eliminations,” he says, still imagining a positive scenario.
“We function a lot mentally, if we enter the competition well, with the right state of mind and a typical eleven clearly emerges, we can have fun and reach the final stages,” he projects. “If it comes out of the group stage, Algeria can clearly create great momentum and go all the way. » Verdict this winter in Morocco.
