Algeria: Just Retired from the National Team, Mandi Faces His First Rough Patch

Three months after ending a 12-year career with Algeria’s national team, Aïssa Mandi has lost his starting place at Levante. A starter in the first six La Liga matches, the defender remained on the bench for the last two, against Sevilla (3-3) and Deportivo La Coruña (1-1), as Luís Castro selected Adrián de la Fuente and Ifeanyi Ndukwe. After an impressive season at Lille, where supporters voted him the club’s best player, Mandi, who is nearly 35, is now competing in a relegation battle with 17th-place Levante.