Algeria manager Brahim Hemdani has left Manchester City‘s Rayan Aït-Nouri out of his squad for November’s fixtures and isn’t closing the door on him for the future.
Algeria will face Togo twice in the AFCON qualifiers later this month. The Manchester City player will miss these two fixtures and mainly has himself to blame for it.
The left-back’s behaviour during the last international break led to disappointment and anger within the camp.
Manchester City player’s season from bad to worse
Rayan Aït-Nouri settled for a backup role in his debut season after arriving at the Etihad from Wolverhampton Wanderers in June 2025.
Enzo Maresca replaced Pep Guardiola in the summer and has hardly relied on the 25-year-old this season. To put it in context, he played 168 minutes from four matches, and 135 were in the EFL Cup. The fullback is yet to feature in the Premier League this season.
The former Angers man was hoping to enjoy minutes while with the national team during the last break. He wasn’t happy when Brahim Hemdani started Brighton & Hove Albion’s Jaouen Hadjam instead of him in the 3-1 win over Zambia in September.
Hemdani wanted to bring on Aït-Nouri but changed his mind after Zambia scored the equaliser. After the Fennecs regained the lead, the Manchester City player refused to get off the bench. He also argued with the coaching staff and some of his teammates.
A few days later, the defender withdrew himself, after reportedly requesting to leave the national team camp.
Manager sends message to Manchester City man
Brahim Hemdani has announced his list for the upcoming two AFCON qualifiers. The boss has left Rayan Aït-Nouri out of the squad and explained the reason, with Fennec Football relaying his comments.
“There are two essential conditions for making the Algerian national team: playing regularly for his club and respecting the clearly defined team structure,” he said.
This suggests the manager wasn’t happy with the Manchester City man disrespecting the group in September. Meanwhile, he hasn’t closed the door for a future call-up.
“The decision made regarding Aït-Nouri is logical in the current context, but the doors remain open. No one is definitively excluded,” Hemdani explained.
“We continue to monitor him. I know what this player has brought to Algeria, but not calling him up remains, above all, a tactical decision.”
Aït-Nouri can fulfil one condition, and the second is to feature regularly for the club. This is unlikely under Enzo Maresca at Manchester City, and he may have to move elsewhere in January.
