Islam Slimani has accepted that Vladimir Petkovic made a sporting decision by leaving him out of Algeria’s squad, but says the way the manager handled their relationship was not respectful.
The 38-year-old, who is still looking for one final club challenge after leaving Cluj, spoke at length to L’Equipe about the end of his international career. Slimani remains Algeria’s leading goalscorer, with 46 goals in 105 appearances for the national team.
Petkovic did not select Slimani at any point after taking charge of Algeria in February 2024. The striker said he had no issue with that decision in itself.
When reminded that the Bosnian coach had never recalled him, Slimani interrupted the question, saying: “No, those are choices, that is not a problem. Every manager...”
However, his tone changed when journalist Nabil Djellit asked whether the way the decision had been handled was respectful.
“Respectful? I wouldn’t say that,” Slimani replied.
He said Petkovic had never travelled to meet him, despite Slimani being the most prolific scorer in Algeria’s history. The former Sporting Portugal striker also disclosed that the pair had spoken by telephone.
“We had a telephone conversation. He said things that did not happen. That’s how it is,” Slimani said.
He did not explain what Petkovic had told him or what had been promised during the call, leaving it unclear what outcome he had expected. Slimani nevertheless insisted that he did not regard the episode as a personal matter.
“It’s football, I don’t take it personally. It’s a world of ingrates. It didn’t affect me. Obviously, there are ways of doing things,” he said.
His comments also reflected his continuing dissatisfaction with the end of Petkovic’s time in charge. After Algeria were eliminated by Switzerland in the last 16 of the 2026 World Cup, the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) changed its technical staff and appointed Brahim Hemdani, assisted by Anthar Yahia.
Slimani, who had already criticised Petkovic’s tactics during the World Cup, welcomed the decision.
“I think the Federation got itself back on track by changing the technical staff. It is a very important change for us,” he said.
He called on Algeria to back the new partnership despite the pair’s lack of experience, pointing to their knowledge of the country, the national team and African football.
Slimani’s own international future appears to be nearing its conclusion. Asked whether he expected one final Algeria appearance or an official tribute, he gave a blunt response.
“If it was going to be done, it should already have happened,” he said.
That leaves an unhappy ending for the player who, with 46 goals, remains the leading scorer in Algeria’s history.