| Club: | USM Alger |
| Season: | 2024–25 |
| Owner: | Groupe SERPORT |
| Manager: | Nabil Maâloul (from 13 July 2024)[1] [2] |
| Mgrtitle: | Head coach |
| Chairman: | Athmane Sehbane (from 22 June 2024)[3] |
| Chrtitle: | President |
| Stadium: | Stade du 5 Juillet |
| League: | Ligue 1 |
| League Result: | Pre-season |
| Cup1: | Algerian Cup |
| Cup1 Result: | Round of 64 |
| Cup2: | Confederation Cup |
| Cup2 Result: | Second round |
| Prevseason: | 2023–24 |
The 2024–25 season, is USM Alger's 47th season and the club's 30th consecutive season in the top flight of Algerian football. In addition to the domestic league, USM Alger are participating in this season's editions of the Algerian Cup and the Confederation Cup. On June 27, 2024 The federal office approved the calendar for the 2024–25 Ligue 1 season with the aim of ending on May 31, 2025. The first round is scheduled for September 14, this delay is motivated both by an extended end of the 2023–24 season but also by the holding of early presidential elections which will take place on September 7, 2024.[4] [5] However, the Ligue de Football Professionnel decided to postpone the start of the Ligue 1 by a week, on September 21.[6]
After great pressure from supporters demanding a radical change within the club’s administrative organization.[7] At the management level, the advisor to the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Réda Abdouch, submitted his resignation, justifying his decision by “personal and health reasons”, indicated the club.[8] Previously USM Alger announced the appointment of Sid Ali Yahiaoui as new general secretary. This is a homecoming for Yahiaoui, who had already held this position in the past with the club in 2021. On June 22, 2024, The Board of Directors of USMA/SSPA met at the headquarters of the Groupe SERPORT, where it was decided to appoint Athmane Sehbane, Chairman of the Board of Directors of USM Alger, to succeed Kamel Hassena who resigned from his position. Still in the same vein, SERPORT has chosen the former Rouge et Noir player, Hamza Koudri as sports coordinator while the former captain of L'USMA, Billel Dziri will occupy the position of sports director. The next day, Othmane Sohbane appointed Mustapha Laroussi as secretary of the first team. Laroussi previously held this position in USM Alger.[9] Arriving in the baggage of the new president of the club, Dziri has already thrown in the towel as sports director of USMA.[10]
After the departure of Juan Carlos Garrido, USM Alger studied several avenues to find the successor of the Spanish technician.[1] [2] In an official press release on July 13, USM Alger announced the signing of Tunisian coach Nabil Maâloul a contract of two seasons, Maâloul who has extensive experience in Africa will now have his first experience in Algeria.[1] [2] Following urgent requests from certain clubs, the Algerian Football Federation has decided to increase the number of foreign players in the Ligue 1.[11] After having formally passed through the technical college chaired by Rabah Saâdane, the FAF ratified the increase in the number of foreigners per club from 3 to 5. However, that there is a provision intended to serve as a safeguard for the license of a foreign player or coach to be validated, the club must pay the federation a deposit equivalent to 12 months salary. This is to protect against any financial dispute. On August 5, 2024, USM Alger appointed former player Rabie Meftah as coach of the under-21 team. Meftah expressed his happiness to return to a club dear to him and start his new mission with the young players.[12]
After more than 40 days of rest, on July 26, USM Alger players return to training to begin their off-season preparation. The Tunisian technician have about a month and a half to properly prepare his team with a view to returning to official competition from September.[13] The resumption session is scheduled at the annex of Nelson Mandela Stadium, as revealed by Maâloul this stadium will be the team's new training camp this season. Soustara team will carry out the first cycle of preparation in Baraki for two weeks, where the technical staff will focus on the physical aspect.[14] On August 14, USM Alger set off for Annaba, from where it reach the Tunisian border town of Tabarka. A place chosen by the team's technical staff to hold the second stage of summer preparation, after a successful first training camp in Algiers under the orders of Maâloul. Les Rouge et Noir will play a few friendly matches against Tunisian opponents and those from other countries.[15] [16]
Before Kamel Hassena’s administration left, the contracts of Abdessamed Bounacer and Salim Boukhanchouche were renewed for two seasons, and Abdelkrim Namani’s renewed for four seasons.[17] [18] [19] As for Hocine Dehiri whose loan period ended, his contract was bought from Paradou AC, where he signed a contract for three seasons.[20] [21] On June 23, 2024, Zineddine Belaïd met with Athmane Sehbane, where he agreed that he would officially leave. The team’s management finally agreed not to put obstacles in the way of the player’s ambition and in a way that preserves the rights of the club. The agreement was finally concluded to fulfill the desire of Belaïd to join the Belgian club Sint-Truiden and signed his exit paper.[22]
On July 8, 2024, USM Alger has its first summer recruit the defender Ilyes Chetti, after the termination of his contract with the Wydad AC, Where he signed a contract for three seasons for an astronomical total salary exceeding 6 million DA.[23] [24] In the sights of several Algerian clubs in this transfer window, Houssam Ghacha finally joined USM Alger for three seasons, coming from Espérance de Tunis.[25] [26] On July 23, USM Alger announced the recruitment of two Congolese players from TP Mazembe, Kévin Mondeko and Glody Likonza. Although he was also called up by CS Constantine, Mondeko has signed a two-season contract with the Rouge et Noir, while Likonza has signed for a period of three seasons. The Egyptian Zamalek SC and the Club Africain of Tunis tried to offer the services of the vice-captain of TP Mazembe, but the USMA was quicker in materializing with Likonza, while he was expected in Tunis to finalize his contract with the most popular club in Tunisia.[27] [28]
On July 24, Al Sadd announced its official contract with Abdessamed Bounacer for a period of five years.[29] Although he renewed his contract for two seasons, rumors of Bounacer’s departure have increased since the beginning of the transfer market. Where Bounacer moved to Qatar with his agent to negotiate his transfer to Al Sadd. Where Bounacer has a release clause in his contract, which amounts to 500,000 euros.[30] [31] On July 27, USM Alger announced the arrival of the Algerian left winger Ghiles Guenaoui, as the fifth player to join the club during the summer coming from the Al Masry SC. The Egyptian club’s management approved the offer submitted to obtain Guenaoui’ services on a permanent transfer, after paying the agreed financial value.[32] [33] [34]
Players and squad numbers last updated on 14 June 2024.[35] [36]
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Nat. | Name | Position | Date of Birth (Age) | Signed in | Contract ends | Signed from | Apps | Goals | Transfer fees | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | |||||||||||
| 1 | Abdelmoumen Sifour | GK | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2025 | RC Arbaâ | 10 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 16 | Kamel Soufi | GK | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2025 | MC Oran | 17 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 25 | Oussama Benbot | GK | September 12, 2024 | 2021 | 2026 | JS Kabylie | 86 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| Defenders | |||||||||||
| 4 |  | Kévin Mondeko | CB | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2026 | TP Mazembe | 0 | 0 | Free transfer | |
| 5 | Imadeddine Azzi | CB | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2025 | Kazma | 0 | 0 | Loan | ||
| 12 | Ilyes Chetti | LB | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2027 |  Wydad AC | 0 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 15 | Nabil Lamara | LB | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2025 |  Club Africain | 30 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 19 | Saâdi Radouani (C.) | RB | September 12, 2024 | 2020 | 2026 | ES Sétif | 125 | 7 | Free transfer | ||
| 20 | Hocine Dehiri | CB | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2027 | Paradou AC | 39 | 1 | 20,000,000 DA | ||
| 21 | Adam Alilet | CB | September 12, 2024 | 2019 | 2026 | Reserve team | 94 | 6 | Academy Player | ||
| NA | Rayane Mahrouz | RB | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2025 | Reserve team | 0 | 0 | Academy Player | ||
| NA | Safi Eddine Atamnia | CB | September 12, 2024 | 2025 | Reserve team | 2 | 0 | Academy Player | |||
| Midfielders | |||||||||||
| 6 | Oussama Chita (V.C.) | DM | September 12, 2024 | 2017 | 2025 | MC Alger | 169 | 4 | Free transfer | ||
| 8 | Islam Merili | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2022 | 2026 | ASO Chlef | 71 | 7 | Free transfer | ||
| 10 |  | Sékou Konaté | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2026 | Stade Malien | 16 | 1 | Free transfer | |
| 13 | Omar Embarek | DM | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2026 | MC El Bayadh | 25 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 14 | Brahim Benzaza | DM | September 12, 2024 | 2021 | 2026 | ASO Chlef | 81 | 6 | Free transfer | ||
| 18 | Salim Boukhanchouche | DM | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2026 | JS Kabylie | 18 | 1 | Free transfer | ||
| 22 | Kheireddine Toual | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2025 | RC Arbaâ | 4 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| 24 | Mohamed Ait El Hadj | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2020 | 2026 | Reserve team | 56 | 4 | Academy Player | ||
| 26 | Abdelkrim Namani | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2022 | 2028 | Reserve team | 25 | 1 | Academy Player | ||
| NA | | Glody Likonza | AM | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2027 | TP Mazembe | 0 | 0 | Free transfer | |
| Forwards | |||||||||||
| 7 | Ismail Belkacemi | LW | September 12, 2024 | 2020 | 2025 | CS Constantine | 136 | 45 | Free transfer | ||
| 9 | | Abdoulaye Kanou | ST | September 12, 2024 | 2023 | 2026 | Djoliba AC | 40 | 13 | Undisclosed | |
| 10 |  | Wale Musa Alli | LW | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2026 |  Zbrojovka Brno | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | |
| 17 | Oussama Bellatreche | RW | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2026 | JS Saoura | 10 | 3 | 30,000,000 DA | ||
| 23 | Khaled Bousseliou | LW | September 12, 2024 | 2022 | 2026 | CR Belouizdad | 41 | 5 | Free transfer | ||
| 27 | Houssam Ghacha | RW / LW | September 12, 2024 | 2024 | 2027 | Espérance de Tunis | 0 | 0 | Free transfer | ||
| NA | Ghiles Guenaoui | LW | September 12, 2024 | 2024 |  Al Masry SC | 0 | 0 | 200,000 € | |||
| NA | Mohamed Benmaazouz | ST | September 12, 2024 | Reserve team | 0 | 0 | Academy Player | ||||
| Date | Player | Moving from | Fee | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 June 2024 | MF | Loan return | |||
| 19 June 2024 | CB | ||||
| 8 July 2024 | LB | Free transfer | |||
| 18 July 2024 | LW / RW | Transfer | |||
| 23 July 2024 | AM | Free transfer | |||
| 23 July 2024 | CB | Free transfer | |||
| 27 July 2024 | LW | ||||
| 28 July 2024 | RB | Rayane Mahrouz | First Professional Contract | ||
| 28 July 2024 | CB | Safi Eddine Atamnia | First Professional Contract | ||
| 6 August 2024 | LW | Free transfer | [37] | ||
| 11 August 2024 | CB | Loan for one season | [38] | ||
| Date | Player | Moving to | Fee | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 June 2024 | DF | Loan return | |||
| 16 June 2024 | DF | Free transfer | |||
| 16 June 2024 | MF | Free transfer | |||
| 15 July 2024 | DF | [39] [40] | |||
| 24 July 2024 | CB | ||||
| 26 July 2024 | LB | Free transfer (Released) | [41] | ||
| 26 July 2024 | RB | Free transfer (Released) | |||
| 26 July 2024 | RW | Loan return (Released) | |||
| 26 July 2024 | FW | Free transfer | |||
| 11 August 2024 | FW | Free transfer (Released) | [42] | ||
| 13 August 2024 | FW | [43] [44] | |||
| 15 August 2024 | FW | [45] | |||
| Player | Contract length | Contract end | Date | Source | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | Abdessamed Bounacer | [46] [47] | ||||
| 18 | Salim Boukhanchouche | |||||
| 38 | Abdelkrim Namani | [48] | ||||
| Competition | Record | Started round | Final position / round | First match | Last match | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Ligue 1 | To be confirmed | In Progress | In Progress | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Algerian Cup | To be confirmed | To be confirmed | In Progress | In Progress | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Confederation Cup | To be confirmed | To be confirmed | In Progress | In Progress | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TotalLigue 1See main article: 2024–25 Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1. MatchesThe league fixtures were announced on 11 July 2024.[49] All times are local, WAT (UTC+1). Algerian CupSee main article: 2024–25 Algerian Cup. Confederation CupSee main article: 2024–25 CAF Confederation Cup. Qualifying roundsSee main article: 2024–25 CAF Confederation Cup qualifying rounds. In the qualifying rounds, each tie will be played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If the aggregate score will be tied after the second leg, the away goals rule was applied, and if still tied, extra time will not be played, and the penalty shoot-out will be used to determine the winner (Regulations III. 13 & 14). The draw for the qualifying rounds was held on 11 July 2024, 12:00 GMT (15:00 local time, UTC+3), at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.[50] Second roundSquad informationAppearances and goals
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