Riyadh: Al-Ahli captain Riyad Mahrez has been left out of the Algerian national team squad announced by Swiss coach Vladimir Petkovic ahead of the upcoming friendlies against Bolivia and South Africa on March 22 and 26, Arriyadiyah reported.
Petkovic confirmed that Mahrez was the one who asked not to be summoned to the mini tournament taking place in Algeria, the player explaining that he was currently assessing his international future after the recent exit in the first round of the Africa Cup of Nations finals in Ivory Coast.
Mahrez’s career with the national team has witnessed success and disappointment since he was given his debut by Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic in 2014.
He played against Belgium at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, but Algeria failed to qualify for Russia 2018.
After the arrival of Djamel Belmadi as national team coach, Mahrez led Algeria to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations title, scoring three decisive goals, including a last-minute winner in the semi-final against Nigeria. The Desert Warriors went on to claim the title by beating Senegal 2-1 in the final.
During his career with the national team, Mahrez has scored 31 goals and made 40 assists in 93 official matches.
Despite his brilliance between 2018 and 2021, the national team declined significantly after that, exiting the group stage twice in the Africa Cup of Nations, in 2021 and 2023, and also failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar.
