Man City 2026 World Cup Watch: Rayan Ait-Nouri and Algeria down Jordan in thrilling comeback win

Man City 2026 World Cup Watch: Rayan Ait-Nouri and Algeria down Jordan in thrilling comeback win Rayan Ait-Nouri and Algeria produced a dramatic second-half comeback to beat World Cup debutants Jordan 2-1 in Group J at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, keeping their knockout stage ambitions firmly alive. Jordan made a bright start and took a deserved lead in the 36th minute when Nizar Al Rashdan struck an eye-catching first-time finish past Algerian goalkeeper Luca Zidane – son of the legendary Zinedine – to give the Chivalrous Ones their first-ever lead in a World Cup match. Algeria , despite dominating possession, looked toothless for much of the first half, with captain Riyad Mahrez spurning a couple of good chances, and the Desert Warriors headed into the dressing room trailing. Man City 2026 World Cup Watch: Erling Haaland makes Norway history in Senegal win Djamel Belmadi ‘s side emerged with far greater urgency after the break, and the turnaround began in the 69th minute when half-time substitute Nadhir Benbouali rose to head home from a Mahrez corner. Algeria continued to press a tiring Jordan side and eventually snatched the winner in the 82nd minute, when Amine Gouiri prodded the ball home from close range following another corner, a goal that survived a VAR check for offside. The victory was Algeria’s first at a World Cup since 2014, moving them level on points with Austria ahead of a potentially decisive Group J showdown between the two sides. Jordan, meanwhile, are eliminated with a game to spare, though they can take pride in two spirited performances on the biggest stage in their debut tournament. Rayan Ait-Nouri match statistics vs Jordan Minutes Played – 85 Defensive Contributions – 7 Tackles (Won) – 6(5) Interceptions – 1 Recoveries – 3 Ground Duels (Won) – 13 (9) Last Man Tackles – 1 Fouls – 2 Touches – 88 Unsuccessful Touches – 3 Dribbles (Successful) – 3(1) Was Fouled – 2 Possession Lost – 17 Total Carrying Distance – 251.7m Carries – 28 Progressive Carries – 3 Total Progression – 146.5m Expected Assists (xA) – 0.092 Crosses (Accurate) – 4(0) Accurate Passes – 50/56 (89%) Passes in Opposition Half (Accurate) – 29/32 (91%) Passes in Own Half (Accurate) – 21/24 (88%) Long Balls (Accurate) – 2/4 (50%) Expected Goals (xG) – 0.06 Total Shots – 1 Data courtesy of Sofascore.