“Rabah Madjer opens his heart at Echorouk's Forum”

The former star of Algerian football and that of FC Porto, Rabah Madjer who was yesterday the guest of honour of Echorouk's Forum, harked back to his remarkable football career in Algeria and in Europe by notably highlighting his successes, his regrets, his disappointments and his personal ambitions for the future with on prime focus his strong desire to return, one day, to the helm of the Algeria football squad in order to make a commendable showing with the Greens in a future World cup tournament.

• Rabah Madjer first expressed joy at seeing the national squad, under the good supervision of national team coach Rabah Saâdane, regain a lofty place among the top squads of the world with a meritorious qualification for the 2010 African cup of nations and the World cup.
• “I was unjustly dealt with twice and some nasty people prevented me from leading Algeria to the 2006 World cup finals”.
• Madjer harked back to the period where he was at the head of the technical staff of the Greens stressing that certain ill-intentioned officials at the level of the FAF Federation put spokes in his wheel at that time notably in 1994 and 2002 in order to force him to quit despite the fact that he was about to achieve brilliant feats with the national squad.
• These people, for whom he has no grudge now with the passage of time, said Madjer, had insidiously sought to interfere into his work and to impose their choices to the detriment of the stability and serenity of the whole squad and the technical staff as well.
• “My professional rigour and my independent frame of mind were not to their liking”, asserted Madjer.
• He said in this respect that now he bears no grudge towards these over-zealous people especially after the praiseworthy qualification of the national squad for the 2010 African cup of nations in Angola and the World cup in South Africa and its return to the limelight on the world football scene.
• “The qualification for the 2010 World cup is for me more important than the African trophy clinched by Algeria in 1990 in Algiers”.
• Madjer indicated that even though the African title wrenched by Algeria in 1990 remained a major feat, Algeria’s qualification for the world cup tournament is of greater importance as it came about after sustained and grueling efforts made by all and sundry.
• He stressed in this connection that the national squad should henceforth secure a berth in the World cup finals every 4 years and not wait for 24 years to do so.
• “A serious injury prevented me then from joining Inter Milan”.
• Reverting to his memorable football career in Europe, notably with FC Porto, the former African golden ball laureate said that a protracted thigh injury had stymied an enticing recruitment deal with the prestigious team of Inter Milan as he was playing at that time in the Spanish championship with the FC Valencia squad.
• “The African cup of nations is more difficult than the World cup”.
• Referring to the upcoming African cup of nations in Angola, Rabah Madjer underlined that Algeria’s opponents in the first round of the competition, namely host country Angola, Mali and Malawi would be extremely difficult to deal with.
• In addition to enjoying the full backing of its public, Angola will obviously have the favours of the CAF Confederation in the first round of the tournament explained Madjer, stressing it would be hard to defeat them.
• For Madjer, Mali remains an indomitable contender with its numerous talented elements who play with much success in European championships.
• The Greens, further pointed out Madjer, should in no way under estimate the squad of Malawi who have serious assets allowing them to bounce back and to create surprises.
• He recalled that Malawi had, of late, held to a one-all draw Egypt in a friendly match played in Cairo itself.
• Rabah Madjer emphasized however that the Algeria squad, under the guidance of seasoned coach Rabah Saâdane, had the necessary potentialities to win with flying colours and to go far in this major competition in Angola and why not to snatch the African trophy despite the enormous difficulty of the task ahead on account of the great evolution of African football at all levels, he explained.
• As Rabah Madjer well said: “Nothing is impossible to a willing heart”.