The national coach Vladimir Berkovich expressed his relative satisfaction following the goalless draw achieved by the Algerian national team against Guinea on Sunday evening at the Mohammed V Stadium in Casablanca, as part of the eighth round of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.

Berkovich said in his media statements: "Our fate is still in our hands. I congratulated the players for the great effort they made. We could have decided the result if we had capitalized on our chances, but the most important thing is that we kept Guinea out of the World Cup race."

The coach praised the team's defensive discipline, considering that coming away with a clean sheet against a team that includes a dangerous striker like Guirassy is a positive point.

Regarding the absence of some names, Berkovich explained: "We have 26 players, and only 16 can participate. I chose to keep a larger number of attackers on the bench, and it wasn't possible to include everyone like Belaili."

The national coach refused to acknowledge Guinea's superiority, emphasizing that Algeria showed a strong character in the second half, before adding: "Missing three clear chances is rare, but in October we will be better physically and mentally."

Berkovich concluded his statements by confirming that thoughts of the Africa Cup are postponed, stressing that the priority remains the matches in October and November of the World Cup qualifiers, followed later by preparations for the continental tournament.