LUANDA - Egyptian star Mohamed Zidan has revealed Thuesday night that the ‘Battle of Benguela' was the “best game of his life” as it helped banish the memories of their World Cup qualification heartbreak. Algeria, known as ‘The Desert Foxes', qualified for the 2010 FIFA showpiece at the expense of the Pharaohs. “This is the best game of my life,” Zidan told Al-Gazeira Sport after the match. “We were million times better than Algeria, and this was the best way to restore our pride.” “It was a make-or-break tie, that's why all the players did their best to claim such an impressive win,” Zidan added. Zidan added that the team had learnt from the mistake they made against Algeria in November during a World Cup qualifying game in Sudan. “It was our biggest dream to go to the World Cup because we know we are a better team than they are. But that is the game, that is football,” Zidan said. “We made a mistake in that game, and they managed to score, and in games like that it is like a final. It all depends on one mistake. "We learnt from it, and in the game against Algeria in Benguela we were very patient, and we concentrated very well.” He said they had wanted to make sure that they could go through to the final of the Nations Cup. “We did not want to make a mistake because the game meant everything to us,” Zidan said. “We are very happy that we won and we are proud.” The Borussia Dortmund striker said Egypt are now looking forward to defending their title and making history by becoming the first country to win the championship three times in a row. “We are hopefully on Sunday going to be African champions again,” he said. “The game against Thursday night Algeria was very important. The victory meant everything to us.” Zidan said that the Pharaohs are a very strong side. “We have many good players and many good talents. We are doing very well, and our confidence is very high at the moment,” he added. “Even if we miss some important players in our team, we can always come back. Our team does not stand on one player, and we showed that in the last three tournaments.” He said he wanted to dedicate the victory to all the Egyptians who supported them against Algeria, “We know already that people in Egypt are celebrating in the streets, and we are very happy about that. We are very proud to make our people happy.” But Ahmed Fathi was far from impressed with the antics of the Algerians. “They were too aggressive,” Fathi said after the game. “They have been kicking us through out the game. Even after the final whistle, they refused to shake hands with us,” Fathi added.
