The Algerian U17-B squad suffered a major setback this Friday at the Sousse Olympic Stadium. Facing Tunisia on the second matchday of the UNAF tournament, which serves as a qualifier for the 2027 U17 AFCON, Karim Ziani’s players fell heavily by a score of 4 goals to 1.
Following a successful opening match against Morocco, the young Fennecs hit a major roadblock against Tunisia. It is an underperformance that complicates their path in the 2027 U17 AFCON qualifiers.
The promising start by the Algerian U17 national team ultimately went unconfirmed. Three days after their victory over Morocco (1-0), the young Fennecs endured a heavy defeat against Tunisia (4-1) this Friday at the Sousse Olympic Stadium. It was a particularly concerning loss for Karim Ziani’s squad during the second round of the UNAF tournament, a qualifying event for the 2027 U17 AFCON.
Yet, the Algerians had started the match flawlessly. Just as they did against Morocco, the Greens were the first to find the back of the net thanks to Yacine Abed, who opened the scoring in the 22nd minute. However, their lead lasted only twelve minutes. In the 34th minute, the Tunisians equalized from a set piece poorly handled by the Algerian defense, sending both sides into the locker room level at 1-1. After the interval, the young Fennecs completely collapsed. Capitalizing on numerous Algerian defensive blunders, Tunisia took the lead in the 63rd minute before extending their advantage from the penalty spot ten minutes later. The hosts definitively sealed their victory in the 89th minute by netting a fourth goal.
Sitting in third place, Algeria U17-B will play for survival this Monday, November 16 (2:00 PM) in Monastir against group leaders Egypt. To punch their ticket to the AFCON, Karim Ziani’s men must secure a positive result while keeping a close eye on the clash between Tunisia and Morocco. Three scenarios emerge:
Algeria win + Tunisia slip-up (draw or loss): the Greens qualify with 6 points.
Algeria win + Tunisia win: a three-way tie on 6 points (Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria). The tiebreaker will be goal difference among these three nations, a highly unfavorable scenario for the Greens, who would need to win by a massive margin against Egypt to offset the 4-1 loss.
Algeria draw + Tunisia loss: Algeria advances with 4 points, ahead of 3 points for their two pursuers.