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Angola national football team
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The Angola national football team, nicknamed Palancas Negras, ("The Black Antelopes") is the national team of Angola and is controlled by the Federação Angolana de Futebol. On October 8, 2005, Angola qualified for the World Cup for the first time, winning their qualifying group ahead of three-time qualifiers Nigeria. They did not progress past the first round of the tournament
Luís Oliveira Gonçalves took over as coach of the team in 2003, having previously managed the Under-20 team, and is the most successful in Angolan history, having lead them into their first World Cup, and to the quarterfinals of the Africa Nations Cup for the first time.
Key players
Angola Football Achievements
- COSAFA Cup :
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- 3 Times Champion (1999, 2001, 2004)
- Central African Games :
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History
Angola came to international prominence in the 1990s with appearances in two African Nations Cup tournaments.
They finished runners-up behind Cameroon in the 1998 and 2002 World Cup qualifying series, losing only one game in the process. They finally qualified for their first World Cup in 2006, and performed credibly to finish third in their group behind Portugal and Mexico.
World Cup record
African Nations Cup record
Fans of the Angolan national football team in Cologne, Germany.
When picking the squad, Gonçalves sought advice from Chelsea manager José Mourinho, whose wife was born in Angola. They lost their opening game in the World Cup to a theoretically much stronger Portuguese side. The final score was 1-0, which was a surprise for most people as Portugal dominated throughout the match, but Angola managed to hold on. Pauleta scored the only goal of the game.
With memorable saves from their keeper João Ricardo, Angola played Mexico to a 0-0 draw in Hannover on the 16th of June, earning their first World Cup point.
For their third match, the team played 1-1 against Iran. They took the lead in the last match when Flávio scored after an hour. This gave them a theoretical chance to qualify for the next round, but Iran equalized after 15 minutes, ending Angola's hopes.
Current Squad
The following players were called for the friendly match against Uganda on June 23, 2008.
| No. |
Pos. |
Player |
DoB (Age) |
Caps |
Goals |
Club |
| 1 |
GK |
Lama |
February 1, 1981 |
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|
 Petro Atletico |
| 12 |
GK |
Nuno |
February 27, 1980 |
|
|
AS Aviacao |
| 2 |
DF |
Jamuana |
|
3 |
0 |
Petro Atletico |
| 3 |
DF |
Jamba |
July 10, 1977 |
|
|
Petro Atletico |
| 4 |
DF |
Amaro |
November 12, 1986 |
0 |
0 |
Sport Luanda e Benfica |
| 6 |
DF |
Yamba Asha |
July 31, 1978 |
61 |
1 |
Petro Atletico |
| 13 |
DF |
Locó |
December 25, 1984 |
|
|
Primeiro Agosto |
| 15 |
DF |
Rui Marques |
September 3, 1977 |
11 |
0 |
 Leeds United |
| 5 |
MF |
Xara |
October 10, 1981 |
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|
Petro Atletico |
| 7 |
MF |
Zé Kalanga |
October 12, 1983 |
|
|
 Dinamo |
| 8 |
MF |
André Macanga |
May 14, 1978 |
|
|
 Al-Kuwait |
| 11 |
MF |
Gilberto |
September 21, 1982 |
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 Al-Ahly |
| 14 |
MF |
Mendonça |
October 9, 1982 |
|
|
 Estrela Amadora |
| 17 |
MF |
Job |
September 27, 1987 |
4 |
1 |
Petro Atletico |
| 9 |
FW |
Mantorras |
March 18, 1982 |
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Benfica |
| 10 |
FW |
Vado |
|
|
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Sport Luanda e Benfica |
| 16 |
FW |
Flávio |
December 30, 1979 |
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Al-Ahly |
| 18 |
FW |
Love |
March 14, 1979 |
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Primeiro Agosto |
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Recent Call Ups
The following players have been called up for the team in 2008.
| Name |
DOB |
Club |
Caps (goals) |
Most Recent Call up |
| Goalkeepers |
| Mário |
June 1, 1985 |
InterClube |
1 (0) |
v Niger, June 8, 2008 |
| Defenders |
| Manuel Machado |
December 24, 1985 |
Anadia F.C. |
0 (0) |
v Uganda, June 14, 2008 |
| Kali |
October 11, 1978 |
 FC Sion |
32 (0) |
v Uganda, June 14, 2008 |
| Marco Airosa |
August 6, 1984 |
CD Fátima |
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v Egypt, February 4, 2008 |
| Midfielders |
| Maurito |
June 24, 1981 |
Al-Kuwait |
22 (4) |
v Uganda, June 14, 2008 |
| Édson |
February 3, 1980 |
Pacos Ferreira |
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v Egypt, February 4, 2008 |
| Dedé |
July 4, 1981 |
Pacos Ferreira |
3 (1) |
v Senegal, January 27, 2008 |
| Figueiredo |
November 28, 1972 |
Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ |
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v South Africa, January 23, 2008 |
| Strikers |
| Minguito |
May 15, 1983 |
InterClube |
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v Uganda, June 14, 2008 |
| Diangi Matusiwa |
December 21, 1985 |
 FC Den Bosch |
0 (0) |
v Benin, June 1, 2008 |
| Manucho Goncalves |
March 7, 1983 |
Manchester United |
14 (6) |
v Egypt, February 4, 2008 |
| Mateus |
June 19, 1984 |
Nacional |
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v Egypt, February 4, 2008 |
External links
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