Jordan vs Algeria Prediction: World Cup 2026 Match Preview

Who will get their first points in Group J of the 2026 World Cup? We look ahead to Tuesday’s clash in San Francisco with our Jordan vs Algeria prediction and preview.

Jordan vs Algeria: The Key Insights

• Algeria have won just one of their last 11 World Cup matches (D3 L7), but are the Opta supercomputer’s favourites for victory here at 60.1%.
• Jordan are without a win in their last six matches in all competitions (D2 L4), suffering as many defeats as in their previous 13 games (W7 D2).
• Algeria have never previously lost their opening two matches at a World Cup finals.

Jordan and Algeria are aiming to recover from losing starts in Group J when they lock horns at San Francisco Bay Stadium on Tuesday.

World Cup debutants Jordan held their own for 75 minutes of their first match against Austria – Ali Olwan bringing them back on level terms after Romano Schmid’s opener – but eventually succumbed to a Yazan Al Arab own-goal and Marko Arnautović’s penalty as they were beaten 3-1.

Meanwhile, Algeria were on the receiving end of a Lionel Messi masterclass on their return to the finals after 12 years away, with the Argentina skipper’s hat-trick condemning them to a 3-0 defeat.

It was their joint-heaviest loss at the World Cup, matching the 3-0 reverse they suffered against Spain in Mexico 40 years earlier.

Algeria have won just one of their last 11 matches at the World Cup (D3 L7), after winning two of their first three games on debut in 1982 (L1).

Nevertheless, Vladimir Petković’s side will be pleased to a degree that, on paper, their toughest game of Group J is out of the way, and there were some positives to take from their performance against the reigning champions.

Aïssa Mandi became the first African player on record to complete 100 or more passes in a World Cup match (since 1966), with the defender completing 100 of the 105 he attempted (95.2%).

The threat posed by Farès Chaïbi will also have encouraged Algeria. The winger, who recorded the most shots for the Fennecs during the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year with eight, was involved in four of the seven attempts his side registered on Matchday 1 (three taken, one created).

Algeria will turn to the likes of Chaïbi for inspiration as they look to continue their record of having never lost their opening two games at a World Cup finals.

Jordan, meanwhile, will hope Olwan can continue his rich vein of form on the international stage. His equaliser against Austria was his eighth goal in 10 appearances – six more than any of his teammates during that span.

Jamal Sellami’s side produced a spirited display on their World Cup bow – winning 52.7% of the duels and recording a higher passing accuracy in the final third than Austria (70.2% to 68.6%), while matching their opponents for shots (11) and attempts on target (4).

Jordan also completed 15 dribbles – the most by any side in their first ever World Cup match since Ivory Coast’s 17 against Argentina in 2006 – while their 62.5% success rate (15 out of 24) was the highest by any side to complete 15 on debut since Iraq against Paraguay in 1986 (65.2% – 15 of 23).

Jordan have certainly given a decent account of themselves so far, and have positive aspects to build on, but points are now of the essence for the tournament debutants.

The fact Argentina await in their final Group J match places even more emphasis on the importance of achieving a positive result here, as they try to extend their long-awaited debut at the finals beyond the first hurdle.

Jordan vs Algeria Head-to-Head

This will the fourth meeting between Jordan and Algeria, and the first since they contested a friendly in May 2004. The two sides played out a 1-1 draw in Annaba, with Abdelmalek Cherrad striking on the hour mark to cancel out Mahmoud Shelbaieh’s first-half effort.

The previous two encounters between the nations both came in the Arab Cup.

Algeria ran out dominant 6-0 winners in Damascus in October 1974, though Jordan eventually avenged that defeat by prevailing 2-1 in Amman 14 years later.

Jordan vs Algeria Prediction

The Opta supercomputer favours an Algeria victory, with Petković’s side winning 60.1% of the 25,000 pre-match simulations.

Jordan’s chances of claiming a first World Cup win are rated at 17.7%, with a draw at 22.2%.

However, the form book suggests it will be an uphill task for Sellami’s side, who are enduring a lapse in form at the most inopportune time.

Jordan are now without a victory in their last six matches in all competitions (D2 L4) – suffering as many defeats as they did in their previous 13 games (W7 D2).

Jordan vs Algeria Squads

Jordan: Yazeed Abulaila, Nour Bani Ateyah, Abdallah Al Fakhori, Mohammad Abu Hasheesh, Abdallah Nasib, Husam Abu Dahab, Yazan Al Arab, Mohammad Abu Al Nadi, Saleem Obaid, Mohammad Abu Ghoush, Saed Al Rosan, Mohannad Abu Taha, Ehsan Haddad, Anas Badawi, Amer Jamous, Noor Al Rawabdeh, Raja’ei Ayed, Ibrahim Sadeh, Nizar Al Rashdan, Mohammad Al Daoud, Mohammad Abu Zraiq, Ali Olwan, Mousa Al Tamari, Odeh Fakhoury, Mahmoud Al Mardi, Ali Azaizeh.

Algeria: Melvin Mastil, Oussama Benbot, Luca Zidane, Aïssa Mandi, Achref Abada, Mohamed Amine Tougai, Zineddine Belaïd, Jaouen Hadjam, Rayan Aït-Nouri, Rafik Belghali, Ramy Bensebaini, Samir Chergui, Ramiz Zerrouki, Houssem Aouar, Farès Chaïbi, Hicham Boudaoui, Nabil Bentaleb, Ibrahim Maza, Yacine Titraoui, Riyad Mahrez, Amine Gouiri, Anis Hadj Moussa, Nadhir Benbouali, Mohammed Amoura, Adil Boulbina, Farès Ghedjemis.

Jordan vs Algeria Predicted Lineups

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