Tunisia and Algeria meet for the first time at the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in a Group B encounter at the Père Jégo Stadium in Casablanca on Thursday (Kick-off: 17:00 local time / 16:00 GMT).
This is the first-ever WAFCON meeting between two North African nations that share a border – Tunisia and Algeria are separated by a 1,034-kilometre boundary stretching from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sahara Desert.
It is only the second WAFCON fixture between North African nations in the tournament’s history. The first was Morocco’s 4-1 win over Egypt in the group stage of the 1998 edition.
Tunisia – Key Facts
· Tunisia began their campaign with a 3-0 loss to Nigeria – their heaviest defeat in WAFCON history.
· It was only the second time they had conceded three goals in a match, after a 3-2 loss to Mali in 2008.
· Tunisia are now on a four-game losing streak at the finals and have failed to score in all four of those matches, conceding five goals.
· They’ve gone 388 minutes without scoring at WAFCON, with their only win remaining the 4-1 triumph over Togo in 2022.
· Tunisia have never won their second group game at the finals. They drew 0-0 with Nigeria in 2008 and lost 1-0 to Zambia in 2022.
· A loss would mark the first time Tunisia have started a WAFCON campaign with back-to-back defeats.
· Against Nigeria, Tunisia completed just 97 passes — the first time they recorded fewer than 100 passes in a WAFCON match.
· They failed to register a single shot on target and had just 28% possession – both the lowest recorded across their last two tournament appearances.
· Goalkeeper Soulayma Jebrani made six saves from nine shots faced – the most she has made in a single WAFCON game (her fifth appearance).
Note: Tunisia’s stats exclude the 2022 repechage match against Senegal.
Algeria – Key Facts
· Opened their tournament with a 1-0 win over Botswana – their second-ever opening match win, the first being against Ghana in 2014.
· This is Algeria’s sixth WAFCON appearance, making them the most experienced North African side at the finals.
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· A win would mark the first time Algeria have recorded back-to-back victories at the tournament.
· If they avoid defeat, it will be the first time they’ve gone unbeaten in consecutive WAFCON matches.
· Algeria’s record in second group matches: P5 W1 L4.
· Their only win came in 2004, a 3-0 victory over Mali – still their biggest at the finals.
· Their win over Botswana ended a five-game losing run and was their first win since beating Ghana 1-0 in 2014.
· Algeria’s last 10 WAFCON matches have all produced winners (W2 L8); their last draw was a 3-3 result against Equatorial Guinea in 2006.
· Across 16 tournament matches, Algeria have drawn just once (W3 L12).
· Against Botswana, Algeria completed 336 of 432 passes (77.8% accuracy).
· They recorded seven shots on target – four in the first half – and did not face any shots on target in the first half (three faced in the second).
· Ghoutia Karchouni scored Algeria’s winning goal with her only shot on target.
· Ines Belloumou led all players with 89 touches in the match.
· Melissa Bethi was involved in a game-high 14 duels, winning eight – more than any other player on the pitch.
