Algeria head coach Djamel Belmadi admits it is always difficult to play against the Super Eagles of Nigeria, reports Completesports.com.

The African champions will take on the Super Eagles in a friendly encounter at the Worthersee Stadium, Klagenfurt on Friday.

The match will be a remake of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations semi-final that saw Riyad Mahrez score a dramatic 94th minute winner.

It will be the first ever friendly between the two nations who have faced each other 21 times in official competition at the senior level.

“Nigeria is a benchmark match, especially in the first half, we could have led 3-0. They are always very close match against them, moreover they won more than we did won. I am looking for the difficulty against Nigeria to progress,”Belmadi told a news conference on Wednesday.

“I was looking for matches that could put us in difficulty. Some might say we have to pick up slowly but I don’t see it like that, we have to take advantage of the FIFA dates, there aren’t many.

“We could have chosen smaller teams but I made the demand to obtain these prestigious matches against Nigeria and Mexico.

“Nigeria everyone knows is the third best team in the FIFA/CAF ranking.”

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Algeria Coach Belmadi: Always Difficult To Play Against Super Eagles