Algeria Ends Lone Star Head Coach's Five-Match Unbeaten Run

The head coach of Liberia’s men’s senior national team, Mario Marinica, has experienced his first competitive defeat after six matches with the Lone Star.

The Romanian-British coach took charge of the Lone Star in February 2024 and remained unbeaten in his first five matches, winning two and drawing three. However, his team faced a setback after losing to Algeria on Tuesday, September 10, in the second round of the AFCON 2025 qualifiers.

The Lone Star began their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 qualifying campaign with a 1-1 draw away to Togo. But in their second match, they suffered their first defeat, falling to Algeria on home soil at the SKD Sports Complex.

Algeria took an early lead through forward Amine Gouiri Adem, and a strike from Zorgane in the 25th minute extended their advantage before the half. After the break, the Algerians applied further pressure, netting their third goal through substitute Baghdad Bounedjah in the 80th minute to secure a comfortable away victory.

As a result, Mario Marinica's side has slipped from third to fourth place and now lies at the bottom of Group E with just 1 point from two matches.

Group E is currently led by Algeria with 6 points, followed by Togo with 2 points in second place. Equatorial Guinea sits in third with 1 point, while Liberia is fourth, also with 1 point but behind on goal difference. Each team has four matches remaining in the group stage.

Addressing the media in a post-match press conference, Coach Marinica acknowledged the challenges his team faced and how Algeria capitalized on their mistakes.

"Unfortunately, it was a bad day for us. We had a tough game, and it was a disappointment. We made some small mistakes, and our opponents were able to take advantage of that. In the first half, we played them with too much respect. We look forward to making changes in our upcoming games. We still have four matches to qualify," Coach Marinica stated.

Liberia will continue their qualification journey on October 11, with an away match against Equatorial Guinea in the third round of Group E in the AFCON 2025 qualifiers. Liberia is striving to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time since their last appearance in 2002.