Algeria goalkeeper Luca Zidane has been omitted from the national team squad announced on Thursday for the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Togo, coach Brahim Hemdani has said.
The 28-year-old has recently been absent from the Algerian side because of injury and a two-match suspension following scuffles during an AFCON match against Nigeria in January.
However, Hemdani said his latest omission was “based on sporting criteria”.
“I need to have three goalkeepers who were getting as much playing time as possible,” he told journalists.
The coach selected USM Alger goalkeeper Oussama Benbot, Melvin Mastil of Swiss club Lausanne-Sport and Abdelatif Ramdane of MC Alger.
Luca, the son of French football legend Zinedine Zidane, switched his sporting nationality in September 2025 to represent Algeria, where his family has roots.
The Leganés goalkeeper’s omission was unexpected, as was that of Manchester City defender Rayan Ait-Nouri.
Ait-Nouri was sent home in September following a reported disagreement with the coaching staff during a match against Zambia.
However, Hemdani said there had been “no problem” with his decision to leave the left-back out of his latest 26-man squad, adding that there were “criteria for inclusion”.
“However, anything is possible in the future, and no one has been permanently excluded,” the coach said.
Algeria are scheduled to face Togo on 14 and 17 November. They have four points from two matches and currently lead Group I of the AFCON qualifiers, which also features Zambia and Burundi.