Karim Metmour to Echorouk: “I am sorry for Megheni. We are ready to impress the World”

Algeria’s team striker Karim Matmour shows that he is a good player during the training camp in Crans Montana, but Monchengladbach player refuses to stop at this level.

 

• Echorouk: Where did you go after the decision to prevent you from participating in the training of Sunday?
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• Karim Metmour: I preferred staying in the hotel with some teammates.
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• Echorouk: Could you tell us the reason?
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• Karim Metmour: It is a personal decision. I refused to go outside the hotel in order avoid the surrounding circumstances and try to focus more on the future. After hard work over the last few days, I preferred to take a rest through a massage and bath. I feel ready to play at any time.
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• Echorouk: Is it because you were among the most prominent players in the trainings?
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• Karim Metmour: Thanks Allah, I am in a good position. I have worked hard throughout the training camp in Germany. I felt tired most of the time because of hard trainings, but I was patient and I told to myself that this work will bring something good, so I am in this position and I hope it will continue.
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• Echorouk: Did you reach your objectives in Crans Montana training camp?
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• Karim Metmour: For me, I reached my goals. I did my task hardly and regularly. I feel in good health and this is the most important. All my teammates trained in a relaxing environment, as the Algerian Federation provided all the good conditions.
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• Echorouk: What characterized Switzerland training camp is the large number of injuries among Algeria’s team. Do you think this will reduce the Desert Warriors chances?
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• Karim Metmour: Injuries are part of the game, with the exception of Megheni’s injury which seems dangerous, I think everyone is ready and ranks will be ready in Germany.
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• Echorouk: But you will play a difficult match on Friday 28 before Ireland?
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• Karim Metmour: It is a friendly and preparatory match, so we cannot say it is difficult or easy. We set a number of objectives for this match. We try to create harmony and test a number of tactics.
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• Echorouk: Do you think injuries of some key players like Bougherra, Antar and Yebda will reduce the team’s chances to reach main objectives?
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• Karim Metmour: It is an opportunity to correct the situation, and test our abilities in these hard moments, as we will probably face the absence of any player in the match because of injury or punishment, so the match against Ireland will force us to challenge all circumstances, in addition to other useful considerations.
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• Echorouk: What are these considerations?
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• Karim Metmour: I think the match against Ireland is a small image of our match against England and USA, as the way of playing is very similar, and this is good for us before entering the official World Cup matches.
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• Echorouk: How is the team’s situation after excluding Megheni from playing?
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• Karim Metmour: We are trying to overcome the effects of this situation through speaking to each other or intensifying trainings. It is a difficult situation, as everyone here feels frustrated. It was a shock.
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• Echorouk: What can you say about it?
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• Karim Metmour: I was very sad and I cried.
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• Echorouk: Did you spoke to him?
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• Karim Metmour:  No, becasue I was not able to speak to him. He was living a nightmare.
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• Echorouk: Did you spoke to him about the injury?
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• Karim Metmour: Yes, I asked him not to adventure, because wasting the opportunity to play in the World Cup is not the end of the world, and there are other opportunities in the future. I was trying to help him overcome this situation and I told him that loosing this opportunity do not mean loosing everything, because there are other offers to emerge. I think that the treatment of this injury may bring him back to competition.
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• Echorouk: Today Algeria’s team lost one of its best players. What is your opinion?
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• Karim Metmour: We lost Megheni, the talented player. Everyone loves him, but we will win for him and Algeria and I wish him a good return after the surgical operation.
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• Echorouk: What are Algeria’s team chances in the World Cup?
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• Karim Metmour: I believe that we have big chances although injuries. Trainings prove that we have good players who can impress the world during the WC.
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• Echorouk: Are you ready for the first match against Slovenia?
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• Karim Metmour: Yes, and we are ready tight now despite there is an important training camp in Germany, as there is a number of technicians who watch us. I think Slovenia is unknown to us as players.
• Echorouk: What about the English team which impressed the world before Mexico?
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• Karim Metmour: Friendly matches are different. Facing English stars will encourage us to redouble efforts and this is in our favor.
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• Echorouk:  What is your message to Algerian fans?
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• Karim Metmour: First, I am sorry because Megheni will be absent in the World Cup. I pay special tribute to Algerian fans who stood by us even outside Algeria and in all our moves. My only wish is to satisfy them in South Africa through realizing good results and scoring many goals.