News

Heartbreak for Hammer

|

Said Benrahma is likely to be coming back to West Ham with a broken heart after Algeria’s World Cup dreams were dashed in the most sensational of circumstances.

Benrahma was handed a late call-up earlier this week but did not play in the second leg of their qualifier against Cameroon, which took place on Tuesday.

Algeria held a 1-0 advantage from the first leg, thanks to a goal from Islam Slimani.

In the second leg, Cameroon fought back and took a 1-0 lead, forcing extra time.

Algeria thought they’d won it in the 118th minute, when Ahmed Touba headed home from a corner, sparking wild celebrations from the players and fans alike.

A cruel twist awaited, though, as Karl Toko Ekambi scored in the fourth minute of added time to break Algerian hearts and send Cameroon to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Algeria’s manager ended up in tears on the sidelines, while many players collapsed to the turf in disbelief.

Benny may need some time to get over this.

Share this article

Hugh Southon is a lifelong Iron and the founding editor of ClaretandHugh. He is a national newspaper journalist of many years experience and was Bobby Moore's 'ghost' writer during the great man's lifetime. He describes ClaretandHugh as "the Hammers daily newspaper!"

Follow on Twitter @hughsouthon