Algeria captain Mandi praises 'ruthless' Lionel Messi after loss to Argentina

Algeria captain Mandi praises 'ruthless' Lionel Messi after loss to Argentina

The Algerians were victim of Lionel Messi's first ever hat-trick at a World Cup tournament which included two brilliant strikes from outside the box to leave Vladimir Petkovic's side rooted at the bottom of Group J.

Les Fennecs centre-back Mandi admitted that Messi was the difference in the encounter despite the hard work they did to try and stop him.

"What made the difference is that they have a player who is ruthless, " said the 34-year-old after the match.

"Almost every chance he gets ends up in the back of the net. He might be the best player of all time. His efficiency is formidable, we knew that.

"We tried to shut him down as much as possible, but it didn't work – he was too good for us there."

The North African nation will turn its attention to their next fixture against FIFA World Cup debutants Jordan at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium next Tuesday. 

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