Warriors Lose to Desert Foxes as Marinica’s Reign Begins with Defeat
The Zimbabwe national football team suffered a 3–1 defeat to Algeria in an international friendly played on Thursday evening at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The match, which kicked off at 4:30 PM CAT, was the first under newly appointed coach Marian “Mario” Marinica and formed part of the Warriors’ preparations for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
Ranked 35th in the world, Algeria demonstrated their quality early on, taking the lead in the 15th minute through Baghdad Bounedjah, who finished calmly from close range after a clever assist from Amine Amoura. The Desert Foxes doubled their advantage just before half-time when Amoura turned scorer, slotting home in the 42nd minute after combining again with Bounedjah.
Zimbabwe’s defensive struggles continued, and Algeria made it 3–0 in the 45th minute as left-back Jaouen Hadjam fired in from the centre of the box to cap a dominant opening half for the North Africans.
In the second half, Marinica made a series of changes in an attempt to stabilise the team and introduce fresh energy. Tawanda Chirewa, Godknows Murwira, Prosper Padera, and Prince Dube were all introduced at the restart, while Emmanuel Jalai and Daniel Msendami came on later in the game.
The substitutions brought more organisation and attacking intent from Zimbabwe, who began to create chances in the closing stages. Their persistence was rewarded in the 89th minute when Tawanda Chirewa, making one of his statement substitute appearances, converted from the penalty spot with a composed finish to the centre of the goal, reducing the deficit to 3–1.
Despite the late fightback, Algeria’s early dominance proved decisive as the match ended 3–1 in favour of the hosts.
Marinica’s side showed glimpses of potential, particularly in the second half, but will need to improve defensively and maintain discipline in possession as they continue preparations for next month’s AFCON tournament.
The team now travels to Doha for their final friendly match against Qatar on Monday, 17 November 2025. The fixture will serve as the last test before the Warriors head to Morocco for the continental finals.
Lineups:
Warriors XI: Arubi, Takawara, Galloway, Garan’anga, Hadebe, Fusire, Fabisch, W. Musona, Maswanhise, Antonio, Navaya.
Subs: Mapisa, Chipezeze, Padera, Dube, Mauchi, Jalai, Chirewa, Murwira, Msendami.
Algeria XI: Benbot, Belghali, Beland, Chergui, Hadjam, Aitnouri, Zerrouki, Bennacer, Amouri, Maza, Bounedjah.
Subs: Geundouz, Bouhalfaya, Mandi, Dorval, Mahrez, Aouar, Hadjmoussa, Bakrar, Zorgane, Kebbal, Titraoui, Benkara.