The Algeria head coach has claimed that their upcoming kick-off time with Morena Ramoreboli's Botswana is unusual.
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The Desert Foxes will resume their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign later this week when they come up against the Zebras. Vladimir Petkovic's side are joint top of Group G alongside Mozambique, but three other teams are just three points behind the duo, one of them being Ramoreboli's side.
Botswana recently secured qualification to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and will likely be hoping that momentum translates into the World Cup qualifiers as well. Their encounter with the 2019 African champions will start at 15:00 in Francistown, where a high of 29 degrees Celsius is expected.
Many of the Algerian players are currently observing Ramadan, and several have questioned why the encounter needs to start as early as it is scheduled to. While Petkovic admits the circumstances are strange, he says his side will do their best to leave with all three points.
"The match is at 2 p.m., and yes, that's unusual. The temperature there will be high, but it will be the same for both of us. We'll do our best to push these external challenges aside and focus on ourselves," the Swiss tactician said, as per Afrik Foot.
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"We respect our opponents. For Botswana, it's a decisive, complicated match; they too must give their all to get back on track and get closer to the World Cup. We have to win, and that will make it easier to win the next match."
