Dramatic late Algeria winner sets up Nigeria quarterfinal at 2025 AFCON

Algeria beat DR Congo in extra time and will face Nigeria on Saturday in the quarterfinals of football’s Africa Cup of Nations.Published On 6 Jan 2026A thunderous strike by substitute Adil Boulbina deep in extra time settled a tense encounter as Algeria beat the Democratic Republic of Congo 1-0 in their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) last-16 tie.The game at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat, Morocco on Tuesday was edging towards a penalty shootout when Boulbina, a forward who plays club football in Qatar, was released on the left in the 119th minute and advanced into the area before unleashing a vicious strike into the net.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘Great fitness’: Sabalenka says ‘Battle of the Sexes’ match paid offlist 2 of 4NBA: Durant’s 3-pointer in final seconds helps Rockets beat the Sunslist 3 of 4Bangladesh bans IPL broadcast amid growing tensions with Indialist 4 of 4Former world boxing champion Tyson Fury comes out of retirement againend of listThe moment of magic sparked wild celebrations within the stadium, with the majority of the 18,837 fans in attendance backing Algeria.The 2019 champions, who won all their group games, are looking like serious contenders to win a third continental title, but now face a fascinating quarterfinal showdown with Victor Osimhen’s Nigeria in Marrakesh on Saturday.The outcome is a painful one for the Congolese, who came into the AFCON with big ambitions and had been hoping to set up another clash with Nigeria, having defeated the Super Eagles on penalties in a World Cup qualifying play-off in November.The Leopards will now at least be able to console themselves with the fact they have an intercontinental playoff to come in March, where a win against either New Caledonia or Jamaica will see them qualify for a first World Cup since 1974.Algeria, having already guaranteed a berth at the finals in North America, remain focused for now on going all the way in Morocco.Algeria’s forward Adil Boulbina scores his team’s first goal during the Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 football match against DR Congo [Gabriel Bouys/AFP]The match itself, between two of the continent’s leading nations, had the makings of the tie of the round but never quite lived up to its billing.