Winger Anis Hadj Moussa scored on his home ground to give Algeria a surprise 1-0 away win over the Netherlands in their World Cup warm-up on Wednesday.
Hadj Moussa, who plays for Dutch club Feyenoord, cut in off the right wing and struck a powerful shot into the far corner four minutes from time to hand the North Africans a morale-boosting win at De Kuip, where he plays his club football.
It was as much as Algeria deserved after a strong second-half performance, roared on by a large number of noisy travelling fans.
Hadj Moussa’s effort was his first international goal and spoilt the home team’s send-off before they depart for New York yesterday.
Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane, sporting a mask after facial injuries suffered in April, made several good stops throughout the game to alleviate concerns over the keeper’s position in the side, which has been the subject of speculation in recent months.
The Dutch will play Uzbekistan in a friendly in New York on Monday before moving on to their base in Kansas City. Their opening Group F game is against Japan in Dallas on June 14.
Algeria face World Cup holders Argentina in their opening game in Group J in Kansas City on June 16. Algeria take on Bolivia in Kansas City next Wednesday in their last warm-up game.- Reuters
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