Sudan’s coach, James Kwesi Appiah, is keeping his eyes on the prize after his team’s dramatic 4-2 penalty shootout win over Algeria in the TotalEnergies African Nations championship quarterfinals.
Appiah’s side is now one step closer to winning the competition for the first time in Sudan’s history. “Playing against a team like Algeria, you can’t only rely on attacking; we adapted to sitting back and hitting on counters. We achieved qualification through that approach. We have to find a way now to go all the way for the Sudanese people,” Appiah said, reflecting on the tactical approach his team took against Algeria.
Proper preparations led to penalty success
Per Appiah, the team’s preparation for the high-pressure shootout, revealing, “We’ve been training on penalty kicks since we started because you never know when it could be handy.”
In contrast, Algerian coach Madjid Bougherra expressed his disappointment but pinned on the lessons; “This is football. I am disappointed because we wanted to continue our journey but we have learned our lessons. I credit my players attitude to comeback in the game. Its now behind us, kudos to Sudan.”
Bougherra acknowledged the difficulty of playing against a compact team like Sudan, stating, “It is not easy to play a compact team that defends with a low block.”
This marks another near miss for Bougherra’s team in the competition, following their loss to Senegal in 2022 in the final.
The drama of the second segment after a barren first half
The match itself was a closely contested encounter that ended 1-1 after extra time. Sudan took the lead in the 48th minute when Algerian defender Ayoub Ghezala scored an own goal, but Algeria equalized in the 73rd minute through Soufiane Bayazid’s close-range finish, his third off the bench in the competition.
The score remained deadlocked after extra time, setting the stage for a penalty shootout.
Sudan’s goalkeeper Mohamed Abooja emerged as the hero, saving two crucial penalties to secure their victory.
What next?The Falcons of Jediane will face Madagascar in the semifinals on August 26, 2025, at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium in Dar es Salaam. “Its step by step,” Appiah emphasized, highlighting the importance of taking things one step at a time.
“We need to forget Algeria and face the next game and the big target that is now close.”
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