Sunday, January 6, 2008
Angola Nat.Team 2008 Home kit
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 ever. Luís Oliveira Gonçalves took over as coach of the Angola national football team in 2003, after successful appearances with the Angola Under-20 national football team. The coach is the nation's favourite and the team managed to finish in first place of Group 4 Football World Cup 2006 (qualification), ahead of traditional African football powers like Nigeria and Cameroon. Group 4 was considered one of the toughest during the Qualifiers. Captain Fabrice Akwa scored some crucial goals, including the winners against Rwanda in the last game, and in the game against Nigeria. Akwa is the fans' favourite having scored 30 goals in 67 international appearances. "This is the first time we are in the finals and we want to show off our football. We also want to show there is more to Angola than just war and oil," Akwa said. Angola's best known player is the striker Pedro Mantorras, who plays for the Portuguese team Benfica.