# 2023–24 MC Alger season

The 2023–24 season, is MC Alger's 55th season and the club's 20th consecutive season in the top flight of Algerian football. In addition to the domestic league, MC Alger are participating in the Algerian Cup.

## Review
### Background

In a recent press release, August 7, 2023, the Mouloudia Club d'Alger announced the renewal of its contract with its equipment supplier Puma. This new lease links the Algiers club to the German company specializing in the manufacturing of sporting goods for the next two seasons. On 5 October 2023 MC Alger announced the appointment of the club's former player Mohamed Khazrouni to the position of general coordinator of the first team, as a reminder, the position of general coordinator of the first team has been vacant since the departure of Fayçal Badji. The MC Alger sports center has risen from the ground better yet, he’s moving forward with sure steps. According to an internal source, it should be ready by the end of the current year. The photo of the chairman of the board of directors of the MCA from the top of a glass building alone symbolizes the state of progress of the training and training center of the MC Alger in Zéralda. According to an authorized source, this complex, which will include an administrative building, a hotel, two conference rooms and two training fields, one of which will be made of hybrid grass, will be ready in December 2023.

### Pre-season

MC Alger squad returned to training on September 3, 2023, after a break of a few days decided by Patrice Beaumelle. After a first preparation course in Rennes in France, Youcef Belaili's teammates will continue with a second part in the Capital. They trained at École supérieure d'hôtellerie et restauration d'Alger (ESHRA). Beaumelle added « I am satisfied with the boys’ performance. They were able to repeat the scales and continue to create automatisms. We were able to recover all the players along with those who could not travel for the preparation. I'm trying to do a squad tour and get everyone ready for the start of the championship ».

#### First-team transfers (summer transfer window)

After the end of last season, club president Mohamed Hakim Hadj Redjem announced that the club would make major signings, MC Alger has its first summer recruit he is ASEC Mimosas midfielder Mohamed Zougrana, The Ivorian international has signed up for a period of four years. The amount of the transfer is estimated at 200,000 euros according to some sources. The next day Hadj Redjem signing two seasons with international defender Djamel Benlamri coming from the Emirates. On July 27, Sofiane Bayazid striker USM Khenchela joined Mouloudia for three seasons who managed to redeem his letter of release. According to several consistent sources, the amount of the transfer would be 4 billion centimes.
On August 9, after long negotiations the algerian international Youcef Belaïli joined MC Alger for two seasons, who had been without a club since April after terminating his contract with Ajaccio, Belaïli who will wear number 10 sought through his father to find a club in Europe but it was ultimately in Algeria that he bounced around for 8 years. Belaïli signs contract with the highest salary ever received by a player in Ligue 1, sources close to the matter assure that the two parties had agreed that the monthly salary would be around 1.5 billion with an advance of 8 months. On August 21, MC Alger signed a contract with Ivorian striker Youssouf Dao for two seasons coming from Sparta Prague. On August 30, Zakaria Naidji is officially a Mouloudia d’Alger player two days after the announcement of his departure from Stade Lavallois and signed a three-year contract.

### Season run-in

The Greens and Reds are imposing an infernal pace on the other competitors and the gap is widening little by little. MC Alger solid leader of the Ligue 1 has so far collected 27 points in 10 Ligue 1 matches, a lead of nine points over the runner-up JS Saoura. Only CR Belouizdad can get closer to five points by winning its three late maths. With a boss-sized Belaïli and players in good shape like Naidji, Bayazid, and Zoungrana to name just a few, the Green and Red have been on cloud nine since the start of the current year. On January 10, 2024, MC Alger and Ooredoo have signed a sponsorship partnership for a period of two years, the signing ceremony between the president of MC Alger Mohamed Hakim Hadj Redjem and the CEO of Ooredoo Roni Tohme took place in the presence of several figures from the capital club including former glories Omar Betrouni and Ali Bencheikh, this is the second time they have united through a sponsorship contract after that of the 2018–2020 period.

## Squad list

Players and squad numbers last updated on 5 July 2024. Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Name | Position | Date of Birth (Age) | Signed from | Signed in | Contract ends | Transfer fees | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||
| 1 | Abdelatif Ramdane | GK | (2001-05-19)19 May 2001 (aged 22) | JS Kabylie | 2022 | 2025 | | 16 | 0 |
| 2 | Seifeddine Belkhir | GK | (2001-01-21)21 January 2001 (aged 22) | Youth system | | 2028 | Academy Player | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | Oussama Litim | GK | (1990-06-03)3 June 1990 (aged 33) | Al-Ain | 2021 | 2026 | Free transfer | 45 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||||
| 4 | Djamel Benlamri | CB | (1989-12-25)25 December 1989 (aged 33) | Al-Wasl | 2023 | 2025 | Free transfer | 27 | 0 |
| 5 | Ayoub Abdellaoui (C.) | CB | (1993-02-16)16 February 1993 (aged 30) | Ettifaq FC | 2022 | 2026 | Free transfer | 59 | 4 |
| 14 | Hamza Mouali | LB | (1998-01-16)16 January 1998 (aged 25) | Stade Lavallois | 2023 | 2026 | | 38 | 0 |
| 17 | Kamel Hamidi | RB | (1996-05-01)May 1, 1996 (aged 27) | MC Oran | 2021 | 2025 | | 82 | 1 |
| 19 | Ayoub Ghezala | CB | (1995-12-06)December 6, 1995 (aged 27) | USM Annaba | 2021 | 2026 | | 80 | 2 |
| 20 | Réda Halaïmia | RB | (1996-08-28)August 28, 1996 (aged 27) | Beerschot | 2022 | 2026 | Free transfer | 60 | 1 |
| 27 | Abdelkader Menezla | CB | (2001-01-06)January 6, 2001 (aged 22) | USM Bel Abbès | 2022 | 2026 | | 19 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||||
| 3 | Massinissa Benchelouche | MF | (2001-10-11)11 October 2001 (aged 21) | Youth system | 2023 | 2025 | Academy Player | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Mohamed Benkhemassa | DM | (1993-06-28)28 June 1993 (aged 30) | Ismaily SC | 2023 | 2027 | Free transfer | 37 | 1 |
| 8 | Feth-Allah Tahar | RW | (1994-01-22)22 January 1994 (aged 29) | ASO Chlef | 2021 | 2026 | | 84 | 2 |
| 12 | Mohamed Zougrana | DM | (2001-10-29)29 October 2001 (aged 21) | ASEC Mimosas | 2023 | 2028 | 300,000 € | 34 | 4 |
| 13 | Dalil Hassen Khodja | MF | (1999-04-03)3 April 1999 (aged 24) | ES Ben Aknoun | 2023 | 2027 | | 18 | 0 |
| 15 | Ammar El Orfi | CM | (1998-11-03)3 November 1998 (aged 24) | NC Magra | 2023 | 2025 | Free transfer | 9 | 0 |
| 21 | Larbi Tabti | AM | (1993-04-23)23 April 1993 (aged 30) | Free agent | 2024 | 2026 | Free transfer | 16 | 0 |
| 22 | Khalid Dahmani | MF | (1999-11-25)25 November 1999 (aged 23) | ASO Chlef | 2022 | 2026 | | 29 | 0 |
| 25 | Badreddine Touki | DM | (1999-09-25)25 September 1999 (aged 23) | WA Boufarik | 2021 | 2026 | | 60 | 0 |
| 26 | Moundhir Bouzekri | MF | (2001-12-16)16 December 2001 (aged 21) | Youth system | 2022 | 2026 | Academy Player | 17 | 1 |
| Forwards |||||||||||
| 7 | Sofiane Bayazid | FW | (1996-11-16)16 November 1996 (aged 26) | USM Khenchela | 2023 | 2026 | 50,000,000 DA | 34 | 10 |
| 9 | Romaric Ouattara | FW | (2004-10-14)14 October 2004 (aged 19) | Stade d'Abidjan | 2024 | 2028 | Undisclosed | 8 | 2 |
| 10 | Youcef Belaïli | FW | (1992-03-14)14 March 1992 (aged 31) | Ajaccio | 2023 | 2025 | Free transfer | 26 | 16 |
| 11 | Youssouf Dao | FW | (1998-03-05)5 March 1998 (aged 25) | Sparta Prague B | 2023 | 2025 | | 15 | 1 |
| 18 | Khayreddine Merzougui | FW | (1992-08-16)16 August 1992 (aged 31) | CR Belouizdad | 2022 | 2024 | Free transfer | 48 | 15 |
| 24 | Zakaria Naidji | FW | (1995-01-19)19 January 1995 (aged 28) | Stade Lavallois | 2023 | 2026 | 200,000 € | 34 | 12 |

## Transfers
### In
#### Summer

| Date | Pos | Player | Moving from | Fee |
| 16 July 2023 | FW | Ibrahim Morsli | ASO Chlef | Loan return |
| 19 July 2023 | MF | Mohamed Zougrana | ASEC Mimosas | 300,000 € |
| 20 July 2023 | DF | Djamel Benlamri | Al-Wasl | Free transfer |
| 27 July 2023 | FW | Sofiane Bayazid | USM Khenchela | Undisclosed |
| 9 August 2023 | FW | Youcef Belaïli | Ajaccio | Free transfer |
| 14 August 2023 | MF | Dalil Hassen Khodja | ES Ben Aknoun | Free transfer |
| 17 August 2023 | MF | Mehdi Zerkane | Nîmes Olympique | Free transfer |
| 19 August 2023 | MF | Ammar El Orfi | NC Magra | Free transfer |
| 21 August 2023 | FW | Youssouf Dao | Sparta Prague B | Free transfer |
| 30 August 2023 | FW | Zakaria Naidji | Stade Lavallois | Free transfer |

#### Winter

| Date | Pos | Player | Moving from | Fee | Source |
| 20 January 2024 | FW | Romaric Ouattara | Stade d'Abidjan | Undisclosed | |
| 4 February 2024 | MF | Larbi Tabti | Free agent | Free transfer | |

### Out
#### Summer

| Date | Pos | Player | Moving to | Fee |
| 9 June 2023 | GK | Farid Chaâl | Al-Najma | Free transfer |
| 17 June 2023 | DF | Boualem Mesmoudi | Free agent | Free transfer |
| 18 June 2023 | DF | Houari Ferhani | Free agent | Free transfer |
| 18 July 2023 | DF | Aziz Benabdi | Free agent | Free transfer |
| 10 August 2023 | FW | Abdelmalek Oukil | ES Sétif | Loan |
| 16 August 2023 | FW | Ibrahim Morsli | Free agent | Free transfer |
| 21 August 2023 | FW | Joseph Esso | Free agent | Free transfer |
| 27 August 2023 | FW | Ramzi Haif | US Souf | Free transfer |
| 6 September 2023 | FW | Razafindranaivo Koloina | Unattached | Free transfer (Released) |

#### Winter

| Date | Pos | Player | Moving to | Fee |
| 11 January 2024 | FW | Ali Haroun | Free agent | Free transfer (Released) |
| 31 January 2024 | FW | Chouaib Debbih | Free agent | Free transfer (Released) |
| 5 February 2024 | MF | Mehdi Zerkane | Free agent | Free transfer (Released) |

### New contracts

| No. | Pos | Player | Contract length | Contract end | Date |
| 5 | DF | Ayoub Abdellaoui | 2 years | 2026 | 19 December 2023 |
| 20 | DF | Réda Halaïmia | 2 years | 2026 | 20 December 2023 |
| 6 | MF | Mohamed Benkhemassa | 2 years | 2027 | 20 December 2023 |
| 12 | MF | Mohamed Zoungrana | 1 year | 2028 | 20 December 2023 |

## Competitions
### Overview

| Competition | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Started round | Final position / round | First match | Last match |
| Competition | G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | Started round | Final position / round | First match | Last match |
| Ligue 1 | 30 | 19 | 8 | 3 | 55 | 20 | +35 | 063.33 | — | Winners | 16 September 2023 | 14 June 2024 |
| Algerian Cup | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 4 | +8 | 083.33 | Round of 64 | Runners-up | 2 February 2024 | 5 July 2024 |
| Total | 36 | 24 | 8 | 4 | 67 | 24 | +43 | 066.67 |
Updated to match played 5 July 2024 Source: Competitions

### Ligue 1
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | MC Alger (C) | 30 | 19 | 8 | 3 | 55 | 20 | +35 | 65 | Qualification for CAF Champions League |
| 2 | CR Belouizdad | 30 | 15 | 8 | 7 | 37 | 20 | +17 | 53 | Qualification for CAF Champions League |
| 3 | CS Constantine | 30 | 15 | 8 | 7 | 46 | 30 | +16 | 53 | Qualification for CAF Confederation Cup |
| 4 | USM Alger | 30 | 15 | 4 | 11 | 40 | 32 | +8 | 49 | Qualification for CAF Confederation Cup |
| 5 | ES Sétif | 30 | 14 | 6 | 10 | 37 | 37 | 0 | 48 | |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 14 June 2024. Source: Competitive matches

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Ground | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | W | L | W | W | W | W | W | W | W | W | D | D | D | W | W | W | W | D | L | W | W | W | W | W | D | W | D | D | L | W |
| Position | 1 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |

#### Matches

The league fixtures were announced on 24 August 2023.
All times are local, WAT (UTC+1).
Win  Draw  Loss  Postponed

### Algerian Cup
## Squad information
### Appearances and goals

    As of 5 July 2024
| No. | Pos | Player | Nat | Ligue 1 | Ligue 1 | Ligue 1 | Algerian Cup | Algerian Cup | Algerian Cup | Total | Total | Total |
| No. | Pos | Player | Nat | App | St | G | App | St | G | App | St | G |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | Abdelatif Ramdane | | 10 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 16 | 0 |
| 2 | GK | Seifeddine Belkhir | | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | GK | Oussama Litim | | 19 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 19 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||||||
| 4 | CB | Djamel Benlamri | | 23 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 27 | 23 | 0 |
| 5 | CB | Ayoub Abdellaoui | | 28 | 27 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 32 | 31 | 3 |
| 14 | LB | Hamza Mouali | | 27 | 26 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 32 | 31 | 0 |
| 17 | RB | Kamel Hamidi | | 15 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 20 | 11 | 0 |
| 19 | CB | Ayoub Ghezala | | 21 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 26 | 17 | 1 |
| 20 | RB | Réda Halaïmia | | 29 | 27 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 33 | 30 | 1 |
| 27 | CB | Abdelkader Menezla | | 7 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||||||
| 3 | MF | Massinissa Benchelouche | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DM | Mohamed Benkhemassa | | 24 | 22 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 29 | 27 | 1 |
| 8 | AM | Feth-Allah Tahar | | 23 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 27 | 22 | 0 |
| 12 | DM | Mohamed Zougrana | | 28 | 26 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 34 | 32 | 4 |
| 13 | MF | Dalil Hassen Khodja | | 17 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 8 | 0 |
| 15 | CM | Ammar El Orfi | | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | AM | Larbi Tabti | | 12 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 8 | 0 |
| 22 | MF | Khalid Dahmani | | 10 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 8 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | Badreddine Touki | | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 4 | 0 |
| 26 | MF | Moundhir Bouzekri | | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 67 | MF | Oussama Benhaoua | | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Forwards |||||||||||||
| 7 | CF | Sofiane Bayazid | | 28 | 22 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 34 | 27 | 10 |
| 9 | FW | Romaric Ouattara | | 5 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 2 |
| 10 | LW | Youcef Belaïli | | 21 | 21 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 26 | 26 | 16 |
| 11 | CF | Youssouf Dao | | 15 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 4 | 1 |
| 18 | CF | Khayreddine Merzougui | | 28 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 33 | 10 | 11 |
| 24 | CF | Zakaria Naidji | | 28 | 27 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 34 | 33 | 12 |
| 41 | FW | Mehdi Boucherit | | 11 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 1 | 3 |
| | FW | Fares Belaili | | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Players transferred out during the season |||||||||||||
| 21 | AM / RW | Mehdi Zerkane | | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | ST | Ali Haroun | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | LW | Chouaib Debbih | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | 30 | 30 | 55 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 35 | 35 | 67 |
Last updated: 5 July 2024 Source: soccerway.com

### Goalscorers

    As of 5 July 2024
Includes all competitive matches.
| No. | Nat. | Player | Pos. | L 1 | AC | TOTAL |
| 10 | | Youcef Belaïli | FW | 14 | 2 | 16 |
| 24 | | Zakaria Naidji | FW | 11 | 1 | 12 |
| 18 | | Khayreddine Merzougui | FW | 9 | 2 | 11 |
| 7 | | Sofiane Bayazid | FW | 8 | 2 | 10 |
| 12 | | Mohamed Zougrana | MF | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 41 | | Mehdi Boucherit | FW | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 5 | | Ayoub Abdellaoui | DF | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 9 | | Romaric Ouattara | FW | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | | Mohammed Benkhemassa | MF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | | Youssouf Dao | FW | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 20 | | Réda Halaïmia | DF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 19 | | Ayoub Ghezala | DF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Own Goals | Own Goals | Own Goals | Own Goals | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 55 | 12 | 67 |

### Assists

    As of 5 July 2024
| No. | Nat. | Player | Pos. | L 1 | AC | TOTAL |
| 10 | | Youcef Belaïli | FW | 12 | 2 | 14 |
| 24 | | Zakaria Naidji | FW | 5 | 1 | 6 |
| 11 | | Youssouf Dao | FW | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 8 | | Fethallah Tahar | MF | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 20 | | Réda Halaïmia | DF | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 17 | | Kamel Hamidi | DF | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | | Mohamed Zougrana | MF | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | | Mohamed Benkhemassa | MF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 67 | | Oussama Benhaoua | MF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | | Sofiane Bayazid | FW | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | | Hamza Mouali | DF | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 | | Romaric Ouattara | FW | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 41 | | Mehdi Boucherit | FW | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals | Totals | Totals | Totals | 31 | 6 | 37 |

### Penalties

| Date | Name | Opponent | Scored? |
| 11 November 2023 | Youcef Belaïli | ASO Chlef | Y |
| 17 November 2023 | Youcef Belaïli | JS Saoura | Y |
| 25 November 2023 | Youcef Belaïli | US Souf | Y |
| 9 March 2024 | Khayreddine Merzougui | CR Zaouia | Y |
| 30 March 2024 | Youcef Belaïli | USM Khenchela | Y |
| 14 April 2024 | Youcef Belaïli | WA Tlemcen | Y |
| 26 May 2024 | Khayreddine Merzougui | JS Kabylie | Y |
| 14 June 2024 | Youcef Belaïli | MC Oran | Y |

### Clean sheets

    As of 5 July 2024
Includes all competitive matches.
| | | | | | Clean sheets | Clean sheets | Clean sheets |
| No. | Nat | Name | GP | GA | L 1 | AC | Total |
| 1 | | Abdelatif Ramdane | 16 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 10 |
| 2 | | Seifeddine Belkhir | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | | Oussama Litim | 19 | 16 | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| | | TOTALS | TOTALS | 25 | 19 | 2 | 21 |